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oil on cardboard, 46 x 60 cm, signed and dated bottom right, in black, "N. Dărăscu, 1916"
Research information
The artwork participated in the "N. Dărăscu" Exhibition, Art Museum of the Socialist Republic of Romania, 1966, Bucharest, cat. no. 36.
Nicolae Dărăscu often created works inspired by his travels through Dobrogea and the Danube Delta. The composition belongs to his period of artistic maturity, the 1920s when he often depicted oriental life scenes, Dobrogean and landscapes with nomadic characters.
The work captures some characters in a moment of rest, in a nomadic settlement. The characters are arranged around a field area that could suggest the idea of a short stop during a journey.
The scene is inspired by the multicultural universe of Dobrogea, of the Tatars, Turks or other local populations that Nicolae Dărăscu observed and studied on his numerous trips in the first decades of the 20th century, especially after 1919, when he discovered Balchik and the Dobrogean area.
In this period of artistic maturity, especially between the years 1920-1940, the painter develops a personal plastic language, characterized by free, synthetic and expressive strokes, influenced by the impressionism he discovered during his Paris studies.
The atmosphere of the scene is calm and peaceful, where the nomadic settlement is suggested by the presence of a straw hut, the cart in the background and simple stopping objects, elements that highlight the temporary character of the place. Dărăscu's interest in Dobrogea, Balchik or Tulcea is found in a wide series of works dedicated to daily life, oriental markets, ports and seascapes.
In these compositions, the artist aims not to exactly render the detail, but the general atmosphere and the impression of authenticity of the place. The same concerns appear in works such as "Landscape from Tulcea", "Dobrogean landscape", "View of Balchik from the sea", "Tatar cemetery in Balchik", "Turkish family in Dobrogea", "Fountain in Balchik" the series dedicated to Balchik or the landscapes from the Delta, where Dărăscu constructs calm and contemplative images, populated by diverse communities and captured in strong light, specific to southern Dobrogea and where they are found in several museums in the country, such as the Bucharest City Museum, the Art Museum Constanta or Tulcea.
Especially in the works made in Balchik and Tulcea, the artist develops this fluid and airy way of painting, based on the vibration of light and the simplification of forms through color. Through these landscapes, Dărăscu does not only capture the image of a place, but manages to convey the discreet emotion of the Dobrogean space, the tranquility of the ports, the warmth of the southern light and the calm rhythm of everyday life. (S.S)
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