Romania’s Art Safari and Constanța Casino announce new joint exhibition

The Constanța Casino, in partnership with Art Safari, announced a new exhibition titled “SHE: The Queen and the Sea,” dedicated to Queen Marie of Romania.

The project explores the profound relationship between Marie and the Black Sea, “on whose shores the Queen enjoyed some of the most beautiful moments of her life,” according to the organizers.

The exhibition “is not only a tribute to the profound bond between Queen Marie and the seashore, but also our way of celebrating the rebirth of this emblematic building. We want art to become a destination in itself in the summer season of 2026, perfectly complementing the marine landscape,” said Ioana Ciocan, Managing Partner at Art Safari.

Queen Marie often resided at her residence in Balchik, on the southern shore of the Black Sea, now in Bulgaria. There, “Queen Marie spent her summers surrounded by lush gardens and the waves of the sea, writing, meditating, and receiving guests close to her heart,” the organizers said in the press release.

The exhibition will present to the public, for the first time, a series of Queen Marie’s personal objects that will recreate the intimate atmosphere of her seaside residences. On display will be decorative items, clothing, jewelry, or other personal-use objects. In addition, among the exhibits there will also be a series of works of art, loans from private collections as well as from museum collections.

The exhibition will open in March in the Hall of Mirrors located on the upper floor of the Constanța Casino.

The Casino, an emblem of prewar Art Nouveau architecture and the symbolic building of Romania, was inaugurated in May 2025, after an extensive renovation.

Marie is a major figure in Romanian history. In 2024, as part of the 15th edition, Art Safari celebrated the fundamental contributions made by women to the artistic field, nationally and internationally, through a selection of thematic exhibitions. Among the major projects was the exhibition Marie of Romania. Queen and Artist, which offered an incursion into the artistic life of one of the most fascinating royal figures in Romania’s history.

Last summer, Art Safari and the National Brukenthal Museum hosted the exhibition Queen Marie at Brukenthal, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Queen Marie’s birth.

(Photo source: press release)