15. View from Broșteni [1908]

Octav Băncilă assumes the title of protector of the working class, thus constantly reiterating this motif throughout the more than 1500 works created during his lifetime. Among his most touching affinities are proletarian themes, the 1907 cycle, village life or that of minorities. The time of the revolts of 1907 will be a defining one for both himself, as a personality, and for his work. From this period remains a long series of works illustrating the aspects of the revolts from the subjective perspective of the artist-narrator, actively and directly involved in the rebellion. Băncilă rebels against the regime, leadership, injustice or canons. He bets on the strength of the proletariat and their right to a better life, and dedicates works such as "The Worker", "Worker at Rest", "Pax", "Woodcutter", "Worker and Peasant" to simple people who dedicate their life to toil. He uses a harsh technique, similar to the subjects addressed, with dynamic lines and crude overlaps of paint. Therefore, the artist proposes a social criticism about society in general, but especially about the exploitative leadership. Octav Băncilă's work is on the border between the description of everyday life, with all its joys and tragedies and the contemplation of allegories that oppose reality. His work does not take on a militant character, but remains a faithful review of truthful events. This time we are dealing with a panorama of rural life in northern Moldova, shortly after the rebellions ended. We can admire, through this work, the village of Broșteni with its exuberant nature, with its fir trees, hills, and mountains; but also with the old people with canes who make their way along the lanes. The artist proposes a typical view, in which we distinguish in the background the imposing mountains; on either side of the road, we find fenced houses, while fir trees sprout sporadically from different points of the work. Băncilă thus marks a review of the richness of the natural setting at the beginning of the 20th century, but also a moment of rest at the end of a troubled year.

References

SĂTEANU, C., "The Painter Octav Băncilă", in "Art and Archeology", year III, fascicle 4, 1930, pp. 11-24. COMAN, Anton, "Octav Băncilă", State Publishing House for Literature and Art, Bucharest, 1954.

Dimensions

width 91 cm, height 74.5 cm

Description

oil on canvas, signed, dated and located bottom left, in red, "Octav Băncilă, Broșteni, Suceava, 1908"

Dating

1908

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