References

COMARNESCU, Petru, “Ion Ţuculescu”, Meridiane, 1967 CÂRNECI, Magda, “Ion Ţuculescu”, Meridiane, 1984

oil on wooden panel, 50 x 30 cm, 30x50, signed bottom right, in black, TUC

Research information

Provenance: Adina Ţuculescu's collection; Eutemia Călinescu's collection. The artwork was part of the retrospective exhibition, Brukenthal Museum, Sibiu, 1965.

Ţuculescu is said to have forced the possible and tried the impossible. From this point of view, Ţuculescu can be associated to an unique psychological and artistic structure in the Romanian fine arts. Indeed, he is one of the few Romanian painters who have developed a homogenous and deeply intimate direction in fine arts. His creation can be divided into three main stages. The first of them, defined by pure expressionist colours and lines, is develope d along with the artist’s second solo exhibition, in 1939, and is also known as the “black period”.The second stage of his creation spans between 1947- 1956 and is known as the “folklore- inspired period”. Ţuculescu finds himself, during this period, in a continous search for and transformation of traditional Romanian symbols. The third and last stage of his artwork, the “totemic period”, is the most controversial and debated period by the art critics. This stage is the deepest innovation that Ţuculescu brought to Romanian fine art. The current artwork is part of the artist’s last period of creation. One of the elements that support this association is the presence of the symbol of the eye. Being round and open wide, the eyes represent the artist’s thirst for knowledge, his love for the world around him. Orange and solar yellow touches surround the black line of the eyes as if questioning the meaning of life and death. This totemic vision welcomes the viewer into a magic world, purifies him by means of an intimate union with the universe and the eternal life force. The artwork melts in a fusion of colours and shapes, making possible the imaginary realm. One can distinguish a hermetic language in Ţuculescu’s artwork, Kandinsky’s influence over him and also a deep emotion translated into a lyrism consisting of colours, shapes, lines and hidden meanings. All in all, Ion Ţuculescu stands out in the Romanian fine arts through love for life, a strong belief in human values, a strong union with nature and a turn of phrase of a deeplylyrical artist. (I.C.)

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