Timișoara to host biggest Brâncuși exhibition in 50 years

The biggest Brâncuși exhibition in Romania in the last 50 years will be held in September in Timișoara, which holds this year the European Capital of Culture title.

Works of art signed by Constantin Brâncuşi, such as Ecrose, Capete de copii (Heads of children), Prometheus, Muza adormită (Sleeping Muse), Mademoiselle Pogany, Piatră de hotar (Borne-frontière), and works from the Sărutul (Kiss) series, Rugăciune (Prayer), Măiastra, Pasăre în văzduh (Bird in Space), and Coloana fără sfârşit III (Endless Column III), as well as various drawings, gouaches and photographs taken by Constantin Brâncuşi will be on display.

The event will take place between 30 September and 28 January 2024 at the Timișoara Art Museum under exceptional security conditions. The art pieces will be transported to the city under guard. The costs associated with the exhibition are expected to exceed EUR 2 mln. Out of that sum, approximately half will go towards the museum, which will host the event, while the other half will cover the exhibition itself.

“Brâncuşi did not sculpt much, because when he was not satisfied with a certain work, he would destroy it and throw it in the trash. Brâncuși did not keep unfinished works in his workshop. Everything he kept he did so because he was convinced that it was a work that represented him. That’s why very few remained. There are around 230-240 sculptures in the catalog,” Doina Lemny, curator of the exhibition, told News.ro. She explained that some of Brâncuși’s rarest sculptures, those in plaster, bronze, or marble, are now in the collections of the Philadephia Art Museum, the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and the Guggenheim Museum.

Around 20-25 Brâncuşi sculptures will be brought to Timișoara from England, Switzerland, France, and Romania for the exhibition. Teams of specialists will transport and handle the fragile sculptures. In order to be able to organize the exhibition, local officials began investing in modern air conditioning, automatic temperature management, and security at the Timisoara Museum as early as last year.