ÎN CĂUTAREA NATURII ( The Pursuit of Nature)
Opening | April 17, 2026, at 6:00 p.m.
Dates | April 17 – June 7, 2026
Venue | The Art Museum of Brașov, 21 Eroilor Boulevard, Brașov, Romania
Curator | Valentina Iancu
Contemporary Artists | Mihaela Cîmpeanu, Uliana Gujuman, Katja Lee Eliad, Gabriela Mateescu, Andreea Medar, Hortensia Mi Kafchin, Ana Maria Micu, Ciprian Mureșan, Vlad Nancă, Irina Neacșu, Adrian Oncu, Sorin Oncu, Radu Oreian, Alexandra Sand, Iulia Toma, Oana Paula Vainer, Miki Velciov.
Artists from the collection of The Art Museum of Brașov | Ion Andreescu, Emilia Apostolescu, Cecilia Cuțescu-Storck, Hans Eder, Micaela Eleutheriade, Alexandrina Gheție, Nicolae Grigorescu, Hans Hermann, Karl Hübner, Wilhelm Kamner, Gustav Kollar, Irina Lukász, Rodica Maniu, Hans Mattis-Teutsch, Friederich Miess, Elena Popea, Mișu Popp, Henri Trenk.
The exhibition brings together botanical-themed works from the collection of The Art Museum of Brașov and contemporary artworks, building a dialogue that highlights how nature has been represented and understood in art. Structured into two sections, "wild nature" and "domestic nature", the exhibition traces transformations in the perception and representation of nature, moving from an object of admiration and contemplation to a space of human intervention marked by ecological crisis and environmental activism. Within this context, nature no longer appears only as an artistic subject, but becomes a space for critical reflection on our relationship with the environment.
The exhibition “The Pursuit of Nature” unfolds a polyphonic visual poetics of the vegetal imaginary, moving from the study of botanical works in the Brașov Art Museum collection toward a dialogue with contemporary pieces that echo, extend, and challenge inherited artistic visions of nature.
This curatorial initiative seeks to reopen, within the museum space, a reflection on our relationship with nature—from its contemplative aspects to the dynamics of exploitation and destruction that led British philosopher Thimothy Morton argue for a radical change in thinking: “the very idea of nature, so dear to many, must fade within an ecological condition of human society. However strange it may sound, the idea of nature itself hinders ecological approaches to culture, philosophy, politics, and art.”
(Valentina Iancu)
About the Curator | Valentina Iancu (b. 1985) is a writer with studies in art history and image theory. Her practice is hybrid and research-based, divided between editorial, educational, curatorial, and management activities, and oriented towards solidarity, activism, and political art. After nearly a decade of activity within the National Museum of Art of Romania, where she was responsible for the modern Romanian art heritage and curated a series of extensive exhibitions, Iancu stepped outside the mainstream artistic scene to dedicate herself particularly to researching feminist and queer practices in Central and Eastern European contemporary art. She has been involved in organizing over 50 exhibitions, both of modern and contemporary art. She frequently publishes texts on art history locally and internationally, and has been writing for Revista Arta since 2011. To date, she has authored four monographs on contemporary artists, several catalogs, and the novel "Brauner. Pictorul clarvăzător", published by Polirom publishing house in 2024.
www.muzeulartabv.ro/en/home/
Opening | April 17, 2026, at 6:00 p.m.
Dates | April 17 – June 7, 2026
Venue | The Art Museum of Brașov, 21 Eroilor Boulevard, Brașov, Romania
Curator | Valentina Iancu
Contemporary Artists | Mihaela Cîmpeanu, Uliana Gujuman, Katja Lee Eliad, Gabriela Mateescu, Andreea Medar, Hortensia Mi Kafchin, Ana Maria Micu, Ciprian Mureșan, Vlad Nancă, Irina Neacșu, Adrian Oncu, Sorin Oncu, Radu Oreian, Alexandra Sand, Iulia Toma, Oana Paula Vainer, Miki Velciov.
Artists from the collection of The Art Museum of Brașov | Ion Andreescu, Emilia Apostolescu, Cecilia Cuțescu-Storck, Hans Eder, Micaela Eleutheriade, Alexandrina Gheție, Nicolae Grigorescu, Hans Hermann, Karl Hübner, Wilhelm Kamner, Gustav Kollar, Irina Lukász, Rodica Maniu, Hans Mattis-Teutsch, Friederich Miess, Elena Popea, Mișu Popp, Henri Trenk.
The exhibition brings together botanical-themed works from the collection of The Art Museum of Brașov and contemporary artworks, building a dialogue that highlights how nature has been represented and understood in art. Structured into two sections, "wild nature" and "domestic nature", the exhibition traces transformations in the perception and representation of nature, moving from an object of admiration and contemplation to a space of human intervention marked by ecological crisis and environmental activism. Within this context, nature no longer appears only as an artistic subject, but becomes a space for critical reflection on our relationship with the environment.
The exhibition “The Pursuit of Nature” unfolds a polyphonic visual poetics of the vegetal imaginary, moving from the study of botanical works in the Brașov Art Museum collection toward a dialogue with contemporary pieces that echo, extend, and challenge inherited artistic visions of nature.
This curatorial initiative seeks to reopen, within the museum space, a reflection on our relationship with nature—from its contemplative aspects to the dynamics of exploitation and destruction that led British philosopher Thimothy Morton argue for a radical change in thinking: “the very idea of nature, so dear to many, must fade within an ecological condition of human society. However strange it may sound, the idea of nature itself hinders ecological approaches to culture, philosophy, politics, and art.”
(Valentina Iancu)
About the Curator | Valentina Iancu (b. 1985) is a writer with studies in art history and image theory. Her practice is hybrid and research-based, divided between editorial, educational, curatorial, and management activities, and oriented towards solidarity, activism, and political art. After nearly a decade of activity within the National Museum of Art of Romania, where she was responsible for the modern Romanian art heritage and curated a series of extensive exhibitions, Iancu stepped outside the mainstream artistic scene to dedicate herself particularly to researching feminist and queer practices in Central and Eastern European contemporary art. She has been involved in organizing over 50 exhibitions, both of modern and contemporary art. She frequently publishes texts on art history locally and internationally, and has been writing for Revista Arta since 2011. To date, she has authored four monographs on contemporary artists, several catalogs, and the novel "Brauner. Pictorul clarvăzător", published by Polirom publishing house in 2024.
www.muzeulartabv.ro/en/home/
MY WORKS WITHIN THE PROJECT
the importance of sun ... life's challenges, 2025, acrylic on linen, 87 x 135 cm.
The image is a document validating a particular state within the balcony garden's ecosystem. To capture the photograph of these seedlings, which served as the reference for the painting, the artist's body had to physically interpose itself between the plants and their food source: sunlight. This aspect is cryptically invoked in the title through the expression "life's challenges," with the intention of drawing attention to the invisible consequences of our actions—the artistic gesture of one living being is paid for with a moment of starvation by another.
the importance of sun ... life's challenges, 2025, acrylic on linen, 87 x 135 cm.
The image is a document validating a particular state within the balcony garden's ecosystem. To capture the photograph of these seedlings, which served as the reference for the painting, the artist's body had to physically interpose itself between the plants and their food source: sunlight. This aspect is cryptically invoked in the title through the expression "life's challenges," with the intention of drawing attention to the invisible consequences of our actions—the artistic gesture of one living being is paid for with a moment of starvation by another.
