George Stefanescu
Encyclopedia
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
. From 1989 to 2007 he lived in Lüdinghausen
Lüdinghausen
Lüdinghausen is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the Dortmund-Ems Canal, approx. 25 km south-west of Münster...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
His works are in private collections in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Radu Carneci wrote of him in 1984:
George Ştefănescu is a great coloristColoristIn comics, a colorist is responsible for adding color to black-and-white line art. For most of the 20th century this was done using brushes and dyes which were then used as guides to produce the printing plates...
who dares bring together intense colours, as though recalling the fauvistes'FauvismFauvism is the style of les Fauves , a short-lived and loose group of early twentieth-century Modern artists whose works emphasized painterly qualities and strong colour over the representational or realistic values retained by Impressionism...
age. He does it with a secret harmony descended from both the knowledge of the graphics' progress and from the inheritance creatively used, of paintingPaintingPainting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
on glass and other folk Romanian arts.
Thus, the painter has reached a synthesis of the artistic work, with the colour, though important as it is, left in the second plane, meant to support and illustrate the idea.
In this case, the colour plays the same part as with flowers – luring us so that we may better feel their essences, their fragrance.
Early life
Ştefănescu was born in 1914 in the commune of Plăineşti (now Dumbrăveni, VranceaDumbraveni, Vrancea
Dumbrăveni is a commune located in Vrancea County, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Alexandru Vlahuţă, Cândeşti, Dragosloveni and Dumbrăveni. From 1948 to 1965, during the rule of Communist dictator Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, the commune was called Suvorov, after Alexander Suvorov, the...
), between the cities of Focşani
Focsani
Focşani is the capital city of Vrancea County in Romania on the shores the Milcov river, in the historical region of Moldavia. It has a population of 101,854.-Geography:...
and Râmnicu Sărat
Râmnicu Sarat
Râmnicu Sărat is a city in Buzău County, Romania. It was declared a municipality in 1439. On December 21, 1994 it celebrated its 555th anniversary....
. His father Gheorghe was descended from a Macedonian family from Bitola, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. His mother, Sanda, born Căţănaru, was originally from the commune of Crucea de Jos, Vrancea County
Vrancea County
Vrancea is a county in Romania, with its seat at Focşani. It is mostly in the historical region of Moldavia but the southern part, below the Milcov River, is in Muntenia.-Demographics:...
. From 1926 to 1933 he attended the secondary school in Râmnicu Sărat. His art teacher recommended him to the church painter Constantinescu and he became the latter's apprentice after school. In 1933, after receiving his baccalaureate, he moved to Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
. He took lessons with the painter Ion Theodorescu-Sion
Ion Theodorescu-Sion
Ion Theodorescu-Sion was a Romanian painter and draftsman, known for his contributions to modern art and especially for his traditionalist, primitivist, handicraft-inspired and Christian painting. Trained in academic art, initially an Impressionist, he dabbled in various modern styles in the years...
, a noted personality in the Romanian art world, for the entrance examination of the Academy of Creative Arts. From 1933 to 1936 he studied at the Academy of Creative Arts in Bucharest in the class of the painter Nicolae Dărăscu
Nicolae Darascu
Nicolae Dărăscu was a Romanian painter. He was influenced by Impressionism and Neo-impressionism.-Biography:...
.
Vrancea
Vrancea may refer to:* Vrancea County, Romania* Vrancea Mountains, Romania* Vrancea, a village in Burila Mare Commune, Mehedinţi County...
and Balcic. In 1937 he attended artillery officer's school, had an exhibition in Craiova
Craiova
Craiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
with the writer Ion Ionescu
Ion Ionescu
Ion Ionescu is a Romanian former football striker.- Records :*Total matches played in Romanian First League: 184 matches - 107 goals*Topscorer of Romanian First League: 1962–63, 1965–66-Club:...
; the latter presented his novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
Oameni cu buche ("Men with books" / "Literate men"). That year, he also began to sketch designs for women's clothing and fashion accessories for a Bucharest fashion house. He worked for the construction company SONACO, became a member of Sindicatul Artistilor din România (the Union of Romanian Artists, which included painters, sculptors and graphic artists) and because a student at the well-known private art seminar "Zapan". His professors there were well-known painters such as Lucian Grigorescu
Lucian Grigorescu
Lucian Grigorescu was a Romanian post-impressionist painter.In 1948, he was elected to the Romanian Academy. -External links:*...
, Platon Cazanovici and Mihail Gheorghita.
In 1938, together with the fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
painter Alexandru Mazilescu (now, in 2006, living in the United States) he worked painting mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
s. In Bukovina
Bukovina
Bukovina is a historical region on the northern slopes of the northeastern Carpathian Mountains and the adjoining plains.-Name:The name Bukovina came into official use in 1775 with the region's annexation from the Principality of Moldavia to the possessions of the Habsburg Monarchy, which became...
, he had the opportunity to observe the well-known wall paintings
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
of the painted monasteries
Painted churches of northern Moldavia
The Churches of Moldavia are eight Romanian Orthodox churches in Suceava County, Romania in northern Moldavia, built approximately between 1487 and 1583.Since 1993, they have been listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site...
. From 1939 to 1945 he served in the Romanian military during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, with a corps that advanced as far as Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
. During the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
retreat, his horse stepped on a mine, which exploded, killing the horse, and leaving him with a serious head wound that, for over a decade, left him unable to distinguish colors, which mean that he could not paint and had to seek other work. In 1945 he participated in seminars in theatre directing and set design at ARLUS, led by Professor Ion Sava.
In 1946–1947 he was employed at the film production company
Production company
A production company provides the physical basis for works in the realms of the performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, and video.- Tasks and functions :...
Filmul Popular, who had a laboratory in Bucharest on Strada Scaune. He worked with some Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
specialists to modernize this film laboratory, eventually becoming head of the laboratory. As a result, he was assigned to modernize a film laboratory in Mogoşoaia
Mogosoaia
Mogoşoaia is a commune in the west of Ilfov County, Romania, composed of a single village, Mogoşoaia.In late 17th century, Constantin Brâncoveanu bought land here, and, between 1698–1702, he built the Mogoşoaia Palace....
, owned by the National Tourism Office (Oficiul National de Turism, ONT). The Mogoşoaia laboratory had been wrecked in the bombardament toward the end of the War. This time, he had to do the job without professional Hungarian help.
During his time at the ONT laboratory (1948–1951), he also founded his own advertising studio for the film industry
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
.
In 1951–1955, Ştefănescu worked for the state ministry of electrical power, as director of the electro chain stores of the country. In 1956, though, he started his own design studio in Bucharest. Around 1957, his health stabilized, and under the encouragement of the painter Nicolae Darascu
Nicolae Darascu
Nicolae Dărăscu was a Romanian painter. He was influenced by Impressionism and Neo-impressionism.-Biography:...
, his former professor and later friend, he began again to paint. In summer 1957, he resumed painting landscape
Landscape
Landscape comprises the visible features of an area of land, including the physical elements of landforms such as mountains, hills, water bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds and the sea, living elements of land cover including indigenous vegetation, human elements including different forms of...
s near Bucharest (Cernica
Cernica
Cernica is a commune in the southeast part of Ilfov County, Romania, with a population of 9,425 as of 2002. It is composed of five villages: Bălăceanca, Căldăraru, Cernica, Poşta and Tânganu, several villages on the bank of lake Cernica...
, Pasărea
Pasarea
Pasărea may refer to:* A village in Frumuşani Commune, Călăraşi County, Romania* A village in Brăneşti Commune, Ilfov County, Romania...
, Băneasa
Baneasa
Băneasa is a borough in the north side of Bucharest, near the Băneasa Lake . Like all north-side districts of Bucharest, it is relatively sparsely populated, with large areas of parkland...
, Mogoşoaia
Mogosoaia
Mogoşoaia is a commune in the west of Ilfov County, Romania, composed of a single village, Mogoşoaia.In late 17th century, Constantin Brâncoveanu bought land here, and, between 1698–1702, he built the Mogoşoaia Palace....
).
Municipal Theater Bucharest
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
and surrounding areas in western Romania, where he painted mostly landscapes and portraits of farmer.
In 1960 he was commissioned to execute a portrait of Tony Bulandra, husband of Lucia Sturdza Bulandra and probably Romania's best known actor at the time, for the museum of the National Theater Bucharest. He also did set design and costumes for the play Mamouret by Jean Sermet and toured with the Bulandra company to Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
and elsewhere in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, after which he stayed on another month in Budapest to settle tour matters. He took the opportunity to paint oil
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
and watercolor
Watercolor painting
Watercolor or watercolour , also aquarelle from French, is a painting method. A watercolor is the medium or the resulting artwork in which the paints are made of pigments suspended in a water-soluble vehicle...
paintings, to draw, and to befriend Hungarian painters. After his return to Bucharest, these works were exhibited in Bucharest
in the hall of the Sala Izvor, the main hall of the Bulandra Theatre.
Ştefănescu's studio
In 1961, Ştefănescu did set design and costumes for Mihail Beniuc's play Întoarcerea ("The Return"). The UAP granted him his own studio in the Gheorghe TattarescuGheorghe Tattarescu
Gheorghe Tattarescu was a Moldavian-born Romanian painter and a pioneer of neoclassicism in his country's modern painting.-Early life and studies:...
Memorial Museum, and he had another solo exhibition at the Sala Izvor. The following year, he did stage design and costumes for A. I. Ştefănescu's (no relation) inquisitorial courtroom drama Camera fierbinte ("The hot room" or "The hot chamber") and had another solo exhibition in the theater, exhibiting stage settings, blueprints of costumes, oil paintings, watercolors and drawings
Graphics
Graphics are visual presentations on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, computer screen, paper, or stone to brand, inform, illustrate, or entertain. Examples are photographs, drawings, Line Art, graphs, diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings,or...
.
Theodor Pallady
Theodor Pallady was a Romanian painter.-Biography:Pallady was born in Iaşi, but at a young age, his family moved to Dresden, where he studied engineering at the Dresden University of Technology between 1887 and 1889. At the same time, he studied art with Erwin Oehme, who, recognising his artistic...
, Gheorghe Petrascu
Gheorghe Petrascu
Gheorghe Petraşcu was a Romanian painter. He won numerous prizes throughout his lifetime and had his paintings exhibited posthumously at the Paris International Exhibition and the Venice Biennale. He was the brother of N. Petraşcu, a literary critic and novelist.-External links:**...
, Iser
Iosif Iser
Iosif Iser was a Romanian painter and graphic artist.Born to a Jewish family, he was initially inspired by Expressionism, creating drawings with thick, unmodulated, lines and steep angles...
and others, raising Ştefănescu's visibility among collectors, many of whom Weinberg accompanied to Ştefănescu's studio.
In 1963, Ştefănescu continued his set design and costume work with Război şi pace (War and Peace
War and Peace
War and Peace is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in 1869. The work is epic in scale and is regarded as one of the most important works of world literature...
) by Alfred Neumann
Alfred Neumann
Alfred Neumann may refer to:*Alfred Neumann , politician*Alfred Neumann *Alfred R. Neumann, first president of the University of Houston–Clear Lake*Alfred Neumann See also:...
, Erwin Piseator, and Guntram Prüfer, based on the Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy
Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy was a Russian writer who primarily wrote novels and short stories. Later in life, he also wrote plays and essays. His two most famous works, the novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina, are acknowledged as two of the greatest novels of all time and a pinnacle of realist...
novel. This production was the first in Romania to combine traditional stage settings with the photographic slide projection. The same year, he also designed sets for the Portretul (The Portrait) by Alexandru Voitin, and took a study trip to the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
coast near Tuzla
Tuzla
Tuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
. In 1964, he participated in the biennial stage design salon in Bucharest and executed stage setting blueprints for the play "Fii cuminte Cristofor ("Behave, Christopher") by Aurel Baranga.
In 1965, he participated in the annual salon of the creative arts sponsored by the City of Bucharest and had a solo exhibition at the Gheorghe Tattarescu
Gheorghe Tattarescu
Gheorghe Tattarescu was a Moldavian-born Romanian painter and a pioneer of neoclassicism in his country's modern painting.-Early life and studies:...
Museum. The exhibition catalogue had a foreword by Nestor Ignat
Nestor Ignat
Nestor Ignat is a Romanian journalist, writer and graphic artist.Born in Iași in 1918, Ignat graduated from the Spiru Haret High School of Bucharest in 1936 and continued his studies at the University of Bucharest....
and text by Misu Weinberg. That year, he also made a study visit to Sighişoara
Sighisoara
Sighişoara is a city and municipality on the Târnava Mare River in Mureş County, Romania. Located in the historic region Transylvania, Sighişoara has a population of 27,706 ....
, followed by further travel the next year to the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
coast of Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, where he painted many watercolors and to the Danube Delta
Danube Delta
The Danube Delta is the second largest river delta in Europe, after the Volga Delta, and is the best preserved on the continent. The greater part of the Danube Delta lies in Romania , while its northern part, on the left bank of the Chilia arm, is situated in Ukraine . The approximate surface is...
and to the Romanian Black Sea coast.
Vladimir Mayakovsky
Vladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky was a Russian and Soviet poet and playwright, among the foremost representatives of early-20th century Russian Futurism.- Early life :...
, script by Valeriu Moisescu and Dinu Negreanu. He also did stage design for Luceafărul (The Morning Star) by Barbu Ştefănescu Delavrancea
Barbu Stefanescu Delavrancea
Barbu Ştefănescu Delavrancea was a Romanian writer and poet, considered one of Romania's greatest figures in the National awakening of Romania.-External links:*...
, and staged it again as an open air sound and light show at the Mogoşoaia Palace. In May 1967, he participated in the spring salon of the City of Bucharest in Herăstrău Park
Herastrau Park
Herăstrău Park is a large park on the northern side of Bucharest, Romania, around Lake Herăstrău.The park has an area of about 1.1 km², of which 0.7 km² is the lake. Initially, the area was full of marshes, but these were drained between 1930 and 1935, and the park was opened in 1936...
. Later that year he paid working visits to the Danube Delta and to Sibiu.
In May 1968, Ştefănescu had a solo exhibition of oil and watercolour paintings in the exhibition room of the Gheorghe Tattarescu Museum, with the texts of the exhibition catalogue written by Florin Colonaş. Around this time, Ştefănescu's paintings first show the egg-shaped elements that soon became a significant characteristic of his painting. His paintings drew the attention of the "pope" among the Romanian art critics
Art criticism
Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art.Art critics usually criticize art in the context of aesthetics or the theory of beauty...
, Professor Petru Comarnescu
Petru Comarnescu
Petru Comarnescu was a Romanian literary and art critic and translator.Born in Iași into a family that was related to the metropolitan bishop Veniamin Costache, he studied at the University of Bucharest law , philosophy and philology before going in 1931 on a two-year scholarship to the United...
. He also continued his stage design and costumes, for the play Sfârşitul pământului (The End of the World) by Victor Eftimiu
Victor Eftimiu
Victor Eftimiu was an Albanian-Romanian poet, playwright, and a contributor to Sburătorul, a Romanian literary magazine. His works have been performed in the State Jewish Theater of Romania....
.
He participated in the 1969 City of Bucharest salon of the creative arts, and designed stage costumes for the Bulandra Theatre's production of Ghosts
Ghosts (play)
Ghosts is a play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It was written in 1881 and first staged in 1882.Like many of Ibsen's better-known plays, Ghosts is a scathing commentary on 19th century morality....
by Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
. He participated in the December 1969 – February 1970 exhibition "Art roumain contemporain" in the gallery Baccache in Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and paid a study visit to Braşov
Brasov
Brașov is a city in Romania and the capital of Brașov County.According to the last Romanian census, from 2002, there were 284,596 people living within the city of Brașov, making it the 8th most populated city in Romania....
.
The 1970s
In 1970, Ştefănescu had a solo exhibition at Simeza Gallery in Bucharest. He continued his theatre work, designing costumes for the Georges Feydeau farceFarce
In theatre, a farce is a comedy which aims at entertaining the audience by means of unlikely, extravagant, and improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour of varying degrees of sophistication, which may include word play, and a fast-paced plot whose speed usually increases,...
Puricele în ureche (Une puce à l'oreille, A Flea in her Ear); stage design was by Liviu Ciulei
Liviu Ciulei
Liviu Ciulei was a Romanian theater and film director, film writer, actor, architect, educator, costume and set designer. During a career spanning over 50 years, he was described by Newsweek as "one of the boldest and most challenging figures on the international scene".-Biography:Born in...
. He did stage design for the play Contrapuncte (Counterpoints) by Paul Everac and costume design for the film Pădurea spânzuraţilor (Forest of the Hanged
Forest of the Hanged
Forest of the Hanged is a 1964 Romanian drama film directed by Liviu Ciulei, and based on the eponymous novel by Liviu Rebreanu. Ciulei won the award for Best Director at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival...
) directed by Liviu Ciulei. He also paid a study visit to Sibiu
Sibiu
Sibiu is a city in Transylvania, Romania with a population of 154,548. Located some 282 km north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Cibin River, a tributary of the river Olt...
and Sighisoara
Sighisoara
Sighişoara is a city and municipality on the Târnava Mare River in Mureş County, Romania. Located in the historic region Transylvania, Sighişoara has a population of 27,706 ....
. His work was included in a touring exhibition, "Romanian Art", in Lüdenscheid
Lüdenscheid
Lüdenscheid is a town in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the Sauerland region. Lüdenscheid is seat of the administration of the Märkischer Kreis district...
, Germany, Orly
Orly
Orly is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.The name of Orly came from Latin Aureliacum, "the villa of Aurelius"....
, France, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, and the Watts Art Gallery in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Ödön von Horváth
Edmund Josef von Horváth was a German-writing Austro-Hungarian-born playwright and novelist...
directed by Nicolae Alexandru Toscani.
In 1973, he had another solo exhibition at the Simeza Gallery; Traian Stoica wrote the foreword for the exhibition catalogue. That year, he was awarded the Ordinul "Meritul Cultural", the order of cultural merit. In 1974, he did stage design for the play Între noi nu a fost decât tăcerea – (Between Us There Has Been Only Silence) by Lia Crişan; this was the last of his theater activities; after this time, he devoted himself entirely to painting; his studio in this period became a meeting place for artists, critics and collectors. He participated again that year in the salon for the creative arts at the Gallery Dalles, and the next year in the exhibition 12 Rumänische Maler ("12 Romanian Painters") in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, and made two study journeys, one to Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and the other to Medias
Medias
Mediaș is the second largest city in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania.-Geographic location:Mediaș is located in the middle basin of Târnava Mare River, at 39 km from Sighișoara and 41 km from Blaj. The health resort Bazna, officially recognized for the first time in 1302, is...
and Bazna
Bazna
Bazna is a commune located in Sibiu County, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Bazna, Boian and Velţ...
.
In 1976, his solo exhibition in Bucharest's Gallery Căminul Artei had a catalogue featuring critical texts by university professor of arts Dan Grigorescu and artist and critic Virgil Mocanu. He paid a study visit to Breaza
Breaza
Breaza is a town in Prahova County, Romania, with a population of 18,863.The town was first documented in an act of 1503, mentioning a certain trader of Breaza called "Neagoe". In 1622 the land of Breaza was divided between four boyars and in 1717, the new ruler of Wallachia, Nicolae Mavrocordat...
, a health resort preferred by painters. The next few years he focused on painting, with an eye toward a large exhibition; he paid study visits to Bazna
Bazna
Bazna is a commune located in Sibiu County, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Bazna, Boian and Velţ...
, Buziaş and Covasna
Covasna
Covasna is a town in Covasna county, Transylvania, Romania, at an altitude of 550–600 m.Known as the "town of 1,000 mineral springs," Covasna is famous for its mineral waters. Each spring has a different mixture of minerals, chiefly carbon dioxide, sulfur, and ammonia...
.
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
The 1980s
In 1980, Ştefănescu participated once again in the City of Bucharest salon for the creative arts at the Dalles Gallery, and paid a study visit to CovasnaCovasna
Covasna is a town in Covasna county, Transylvania, Romania, at an altitude of 550–600 m.Known as the "town of 1,000 mineral springs," Covasna is famous for its mineral waters. Each spring has a different mixture of minerals, chiefly carbon dioxide, sulfur, and ammonia...
. In the next two years, he traveled again to Covasna, as well as to Azuga
Azuga
Azuga is a small resort town nestled in the mountains of Prahova county in the Wallachian region of Romania. Azuga is located at the foot of the Bucegi mountains, and contains the longest ski run in Romania, the Sorica - together with other ski slopes...
and to Bistriţa-Năsăud County
Bistrita-Nasaud County
Bistrița-Năsăud is a county of Romania, in Transylvania, with the capital city at Bistrița.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 311,657 and the population density was 58/km².*Romanians – 90.3%*Hungarians – 5.9%*Roma – 3.6%...
. In 1983, he had a solo exhibition in the Art Gallery of the City of Bucharest (Galeriile de Artă ale Municipiului Bucureşti). Among those who contributed to the exhibition catalogue were museum expert Gheorghe Cosma
Gheorghe Cosma
Gheorghe Cosma was a Romanian Major-General during World War II. He began his career in 1940 as Chief of Staff Higher Technical Department. In 1941, he served as Commanding Officer 6th Artillery Regiment and Chief of Staff Higher Technical Department...
and poet and journalist Radu Carneci.
Around this time, Ştefănescu's work began to be seen a bit more in the West, and he began to garner more press attention. In 1984, he had solo exhibitions in Willebroek
Willebroek
Willebroek is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the towns of Blaasveld, Heindonk, Tisselt, Klein Willebroek and Willebroek proper. On January 1, 2006 Willebroek had a total population of 23,044...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and Werdohl
Werdohl
Werdohl is a town in the district Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Geography:Werdohl is located in the hills of the Sauerland, at a double meander of the river Lenne and its confluent, the Verse...
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. In 1985, this was followed by a solo exhibition at the Hagenring Gallery in Hagen
Hagen
Hagen is the 39th-largest city in Germany, located in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the eastern edge of the Ruhr area, 15 km south of Dortmund, where the rivers Lenne, Volme and Ennepe meet the river Ruhr...
, West Germany . Two years later, in 1987, the Meridiane publishing house published a monograph about Ştefănescu in the series Romanian Painters. Texts were written by the art historian Adriana Bobu (living in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
). A report by the art expert Constanţa Iliescu concerning his painting The dancers was published in the trade press in the series of articles "Comori de Artă ale Capitalei" ("Art treasures of the Capital"). In a Chinese-language magazine on Romania, several pages were dedicated to his painting. In 1988 in the trade magazine ARTA, the art critic Theodor Redlow dedicated several pages to Ştefănescu including colour pictures of his work.
Life in Germany
Harsewinkel
Harsewinkel is a town in Gütersloh District in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It lies on the river Ems, some 15 km north-west of Gütersloh....
and Ennepetal
Ennepetal
Ennepetal is a town in the district of Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.The town was featured in the headlines when on April 12, 2005, a hostage taker snatched several school children from a school bus and took them as hostages, see Ennepetal hostage taking.- Division of the...
, with an opening speech by the art critic Hermann Hirschberg. The following year, he had several exhibitions in Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
, one at the Gallery Helmar H. Veltzke with an introduction by journalist and art historian Hans Peter Labonte, one at the Galeria Art Gallery, and an exhibition "George Ştefănescu – Neue Wege – Neue Bilder" ("New paths, new pictures") in the Queens Hotel in Bremen, with texts by Hans Peter Labonte. His work was also covered that year in Romanian writer and art lover Dorina Munteanu's book Mărturisiri şi reflecţii ale unui colecţionar de arta ("Confessions and reflections of an art collector"). Finally, in December 1990, the exhibition "Vater und Sohn im Spiegel der Kunst" ("Father and Son in the Mirror of Art") in Lüdinghausen
Lüdinghausen
Lüdinghausen is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the Dortmund-Ems Canal, approx. 25 km south-west of Münster...
was introduced by Dr. Jenny Sarrazin, the official responsible for cultural affairs in the district of Coesfeld
Coesfeld
Coesfeld is the capital of the district of Coesfeld in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:Coesfeld received its city rights in 1197, but was first recorded earlier than that in the biography of St. Ludger, patron and first bishop of the diocese of Munster who was born north of...
.
In 1991, he participated in the exhibition "9 Künstler aus Lüdinghausen" ("9 artists from Lüdinghausen") in the Lüdinghausen castle Burg Vischering
Burg Vischering
Burg Vischering in Lüdinghausen, North Rhine-Westfalia is the most typical moated castle in the Münster Region of Germany. This region has one of the highest German concentrations of castles, palaces and fortifications, Lüdinghausen having three by itself. The castle consists of outer defensive...
; the foreword to the exhibition catalogue was written by Dr. Falco Herleman. 1992 Dülmen
Dülmen
Dülmen is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Geography:Dülmen is situated in the south part of the Münsterland area, between the Lippe river to the south, the Baumberge hills to the north and the Ems river to the east...
: Exhibition "Neue Wege – Neue Bilder". Bocholt
Bocholt
There are two towns called Bocholt:* Bocholt, Germany* Bocholt, Belgium...
and Ahaus
Ahaus
Ahaus is a municipality in the district of Borken in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near the border with the Netherlands, lying some 20 km south-east of Enschede....
exhibition with the Hamalandkreis. 1994 - 1995 Solo exhibition : private collection : Skillykorn / Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. One of his pictures was included in Romanian school books together with pictures of other Romanian art classics.
1996–1997 Solo exhibition in the Gallery Noran / Lüdinghausen / Münster (Westfalen) and the Gallery Wöhrle / Hamm
Hamm
Hamm is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of December 2003 its population was 180,849. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway...
. 1998 Solo exhibitions : Haus Hünenburg / Bremen, Gallery Käthner Böke / Leer
Leer
Leer is a town in the district of Leer, the northwestern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated at the river Ems, near the border with the Netherlands....
and Gallery NORAN / Lüdinghausen. 1999 Solo exhibition Sparkasse Lüdinghausen.
2003 Solo exhibition : "Der Grosse Vogel" in the Gallery Klostermühle Heiligeberg and Volksbank Achim
Achim
Achim is a municipality and the largest town in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Weser, approx. 17 km northwest of Verden, and 16 km southeast of Bremen. The mayor is Uwe Kellner.-Geography:Achim lies in a valley of the Weser...
. 2004 Solo exhibition „Licht und Farbe“.
Selected works
- 1936 - Natura moartă cu muscată , Germany, Private collection
- 1936 - Peisaj la Balcic, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=202
- 1951 - Natură moartă - Still lifeStill lifeA still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made...
, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=204 - 1967 - Autoportret- Self portraitSelf PortraitSelf Portrait is singer-songwriter Bob Dylan's tenth studio album, released by Columbia Records in June 1970.Self Portrait was Dylan's second double album, and features mostly cover versions of well-known pop and folk songs. Also included are a handful of instrumentals and original compositions...
, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=284 - 1967 - Sighisoara - Schäßburg, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=305
- 1968 - La scăldat, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=500
- 1975 - CrucifixionCrucifixionCrucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=372 - 1980 - Harlekin, Romania, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=403
- 1982 - Allegorie, Germany, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=416
- 1993 - Gedankensturm, Germany, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=459
- 1999 - Das Gespräch, Germany, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=496
- 2002 - Frau in blau, Germany, Private collection http://www.georgestefanescu.ro/poza.php?id=444