152. The Journey [2014]

The artistic universe, bearing the imprint of the painter Stefan Câlția, has a multitude of cultural ramifications. In the intimacy of the fairy-tale world he explores, we discover the archaic world of fantastic characters, scenes with a mystic touch, and ancient spectacles. "Uncorrupted by what in everyday life is mechanical and modernist noise, he carries silence and shyness in his gestures, approaching his work with reverence.", this is how philosopher Ion Papuc remembers the established artist. Guided by Julius Podlipny, then by Corneliu Baba, Stefan Câlția surpasses the usual depiction of the world, and sets out to meticulously compose his own universe. With the authenticity of a poet, as the artist himself acknowledges he would have liked to be, his creation contours what surrounds him, giving off a fine interpretation of the dream in relation to reality. Like an old language long forgotten, his artistic endeavor echoes in the realm of the fantastic, in a mystic topos suggesting a perennial state of reverie. Stefan Câlția's paintings project the balance between the fables of the native folklore and the lucidity of reality. Critic Liviu H. Oprescu observes that in Stefan Câlția's work there are certain surreal elements, which he proposes to integrate under the term "traditional onirism". The artist's graphics are primarily influenced by J. Bosch and Urs Graf, however, it is modeled according to his artistic personality. The recurring themes we observe in Stefan Câlția's works are flight, journey, island, together they make up a fairy-tale world. His works abound in symbolic characters such as the fish, frog and dog. The painter's inspiration comes from unique sources: nature, life of the traveling theater, stories and the relationship between man and divinity. In the current work, "The Journey", we get to know Stefan Câlția in the maturity stage from the '90s and the beginning of the new millennium. The painter captures on canvas an elastic and free world, a fluid realm through which his characters seem to be guided by a stream unknown to the viewer. The characters float undisturbed on this journey, traversing natural spaces. Thus, we sense a certain continuity in his work, similar to the piece "The Journey", the artist has a complete cycle of works with similar themes, through symbols or characters such as: "Traveler with Wings", "The Rider with Bluebird", "The Journey of the Stone Unicorn". The paintings feature dynamic characters, who travel with symbolic animals, in this fairy-tale world. The color scheme of the current painting has a neutral vibration, with a dominant background, using tones of ocher, dark brown, and spots of color in the area of the characters' clothing. Thus, Stefan Câlția's works remain remarkable for their inclination toward tradition, nature and divinity, all metamorphosing into a smooth flight, which is predominant in his painting. (C.M.)

References

GHEORGHE, Cosma, Culture Exhibition, Art Museum, Bucharest, 1980 Catalog of the Group Exhibition "Portrait Art" at the Apollo Gallery, Bucharest, 1972

Dimensions

width 100 cm, height 95 cm

Description

oil on canvas, signed and dated bottom left, in green monogram, "Câlția, 2014"

Research information

The work is reproduced in "Ștefan Câlția. Places", Curtea Veche Publishing, 2014.

Dating

2014

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