ANA POPESCU
Fictional homes
September 04 –
November 01, 2018

LOCATION
RAVNIKAR GALLERY
Prešernova ulica 10A
1000 Ljubljana
CURATOR
Piera Ravnikar

TEXT
Teja Kosi
︎︎︎STATEMENT
            A new generation painter and illustrator, Ana Popescu is one of the most active young artists in the international visual culture. She has been paving her way by means of solo exhibitions and having her works featured in a number of publications, art magazines and other media. For a number of years, she has been exploring spaces, which began as she was drawing her most intimate space – her own home. Her artworks fundamentally derive from the heritage of Bauhaus aesthetics, which, to the author, is a nostalgic reminiscence of native Romania, having been influenced by the German architectural style after World War I, and also from modernist houses known for their large geometric shapes. Having replaced the previously commonly applied Indian Ink, simple shapes and strong colours that now cohabit on the surface. The artist has succeeded in overcoming her respect but also bashfulness towards colours by taking the most daring shade she could find and subsided to the process without much thought. As a result, fictitious homes are being created, reminding us of childlike joy that retains all elements playful and lively, often also adding a touch of summer. According to the artist, she wishes to create images hinting at something realistic without being such themselves. Views into spaces without the human presence, skewed dimensions and prominent colours help us keep our distance from our own reality.

            Fictional homes is an exhibition that comprises a selection of works from the eminent series Homes and new works in which the artist shifts and explores new and new ways of creating them. Her latest works feature certain details that enable views of a small number of elements in composition, communicating with the light. A series of illustrations depicts a multifaceted play with depth and surface, whereas a playful figured pattern is faced with a surreal landscape, rendering an essentially simple scene quite complex. Fascinating images made in a wonderful colour palette entice us with their utopian view of the concept of a home devoid of all personal characteristics of its inhabitant.
︎︎︎ABOUT THE ARTIST
           Ana Popescu (1988), born in Romania, grew up in France and currently lives and works in Austria. She graduated in painting and graphics with distinction from the University of Applied Arts Vienna, where she also earned her master’s degree in 2013. She took part in numerous solo and group exhibitions globally, including Griffin Gallery, London (2015), 21er Haus, Vienna (2016), Wittgensteinhaus, Vienna (2017) and Galleri GEO, Bergen (2018). She has published her works in a number of publications, the most prominent ones being Cool Brother Zine (UK, 2018), Gata Flora Magazine (Argentina, 2018), Elle Decor (Spain, 2018), Printed Pages (2017), Selected Europe (2017), Visual Inspiration from Bilbao (2017), Architectural Digest (Spain, 2017), Tractatus Locus (Austria, 2017), Lula (Japan, 2017), Anxy Mag (2017), Papier Magazine (France, 2017), 77 (Austria, 2014) and The Fourth Shanghai Contemporary Academic Printmaking Exhibition Collection (China, 2013).