EXHIBITION REVIEW: GETA BRĂTESCU, MIRCEA CANTOR, ALEXANDRA CROITORU, ION GRIGORESCU, CRISTI POGĂCEAN, AND ARNULF RAINER: IN THEIR OWN IMAGE, PLASTIC, CLUJ-NAPOCA, 19.09–10.11.2024
EXHIBITION REVIEW: GETA BRĂTESCU, MIRCEA CANTOR, ALEXANDRA CROITORU, ION GRIGORESCU, CRISTI POGĂCEAN, AND ARNULF RAINER: IN THEIR OWN IMAGE, PLASTIC, CLUJ-NAPOCA, 19.09–10.11.2024

Summary/Abstract: Are you or are you not part of a specific circle? This is the first question the show poses when you enter the space, and your eyes fall on Mircea Cantor’s 2006 photograph of a pile of white porcelain urinals heaped against an ordinary, industrial-looking fence. Do you get the reference? When it comes to contemporary art, ceci n’est pas seulement un urinoir. Seemingly discarded, they mirror the fate of Duchamp’s original submission of the Fountain (1917), which was treated as a crude joke and unceremoniously thrown out. At the same time, PLASTIC addresses a circle within a circle—if you are familiar with the history of contemporary art in Cluj, then you’ll register the gallery’s location on Einstein Street as a return of the slightly older kids on the old block, and In Their Own Image, in particular, feels like a door left open, through which you can overhear a long-standing conversation between palls. The works belong to the Mircea Pinte collection (an outstandingly rare treat); they were chosen by Norbert Costin (this might explain the predilection for photography) and Ciprian Mureșan (whose most recent curatorial project involved showcasing Șerban Savu’s works at the Venice Biennale); the accompanying gallery text is shaped like a dialogue between the two. It all reads very IYKYK (in social media speak), as it all ties back to Cluj’s claim to international art scene fame—the Plan B Generation / the School of Cluj, both shifting and currently imperfect labels, but still holders of meaning.

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