The dialogue with the artist Dan Perjovschi (1961, Sibiu) offers a lucid foray into the composite of transient and noisy realities of the 1990s, analysing the state of mind of Romanian society at that time, as well as the more or less attainable expectations of young artists that exit the grey umbrella of communism. The radiography of Romania under transition intertwines with the challenges experienced by the artist at the time, evoking his first contacts with the international artistic space, his first disillusions regarding the new path of society and first artistic efforts to coagulate an alternative thinking territory and critical view on the present with the help of drawing.
A leading figure of local and international art scene, Dan Perjovschi approaches drawing as a performance. As a result, his art adapts easily to different spaces and social, institutional and exhibiting contexts, capturing the essence of a place or moment in images and texts. Virulent, sharp, critical, socially and politically engaged, Perjovschi’s drawings are the result of careful research of the world in which we live.
The interview also focuses on the action held in Timișoara (1993), emblematic for the artist’s gesture of tattooing the name “România” on his shoulder, an anti-spectacle about failure and trauma in post-communist society.
Interview: Alina Șerban
Artworks: © Dan Perjovschi
Courtesy: Revista 22, Zona—Eastern Europe Performance Festival, Timișoara
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Camera & video editing: Dan Iordache
Subtitles: Diana Bularca, Ștefania Ferchedău
Music: Lucian Meţianu, Pythagoreis, 1970
Parkour & IP visual identity: Radu Manelici
Parkour Video visuals: Sebastian Pren
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Film produced in the frame of the projects “Uncensored Act” and “Performing 89”.
The project is part of the national cultural programme “Timișoara—European Capital of Culture in the year 2023” and is funded by the Municipality of Timișoara, through the Center for Projects. Cultural project co-funded by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund.
The project does not necessarily represent the standpoint of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. AFCN cannot be held liable for the content of the project or the manner in which the outcomes of the project may be used. These shall devolve entirely on the beneficiary of the financing.