105. Boats at Vâlcov [ca. 1924]

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105. Boats at Vâlcov [ca. 1924]

Nicolae Dărăscu

1883, Giurgiu - 1959, Bucureşti

Estimate:

EUR 7.000 - 12.000

Not sold

References

DRĂGUȚ, Vasile, 'Nicolae Dărăscu', Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest, 1966.

oil on canvas, 49.5 x 60.5 cm, signed bottom right, in red, 'N. Dărăscu'

The sunny atmosphere and richness of nature inspires him to create a series of works in which he captures fishermen's boats, small houses with luxuriant gardens, abundant markets, or endless blue horizons. In this work, the artist pays particular attention to the way he constructs the forms and the manner in which he overlays the brushstrokes. His canvases are developed within a narrow palette, by only using a few colours. The chromatic related to the harbours, the ships and the buildings is extended in the representation of the water, where the blue acquires shades of red, yellow or green. The present work is part of the series of works that Nicolae Dărăscu dedicates to Vâlcov. Written up in one of the issues of National Geographic magazine in 1940 as the 'Veneția Deltei' (Venice of the Delta), the small settlement on the Danube was to become a pictorial motif in an extensive series of works. By successively exploring the particularities of Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism, the artist confesses his love of nature. Arriving in Paris, at the Julian Academy, he works in Jean Paul Laurens' studio and borrows the palette and the way of laying out the inks from his master. In the hustle and bustle of the French capital, he visits museums, collections and exhibitions that help him delve into the aesthetic depths of artistic trends. He now develops a passion for Monet's work and also deepens his tendency towards pointillism. The vocation for nature and its transcription into pictorial matter converge not towards the illustration of an active landscape, with fickle waves or moving boats, but towards the mirroring of the Danube marked by a deep calm. Receptive to changes in the external environment and possessing a particular understanding of the everyday environment, Nicolae Dărăscu presents water and boats as a symbol of possible peregrinations. The reunion with Dobrogea in 1919 marks a transmutation in the artist's creation. He adopts a broader brushstroke, with carefully juxtaposed strokes in favour of chromatics, and subtly integrates shades of grey among the vibrant colours. In the harbour on the Danube, the painter comes into contact with water, boats and voyages, transforming his works dedicated to the sea or the sun into a chromatic kaleidoscope.

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