ALEXANDRU RĂDVAN: Warm Skin: Altes Bampfbad, Marktplatz 13, 76530 Baden-Baden

Alexandru Rădvan, an artist known for his bold and evocative style, has garnered international recognition for his thought-provoking works that often push the boundaries of contemporary art. His unique approach combines classical techniques with modern themes, creating a dynamic and immersive experience for the audience. The solo show “Warme Haut/Warm Skin” by Alexandru Rădvan, curator Diana Dochia, PhD, opens on Friday, 02^nd August 2024, between 17:00 – 21:00 o’clock, will run until 18^th August 2024. The solo show "Warme Haut/Warm Skin” represents a powerful exploration of the human experience, focusing on the physical and emotional vulnerabilities that define our interactions with ourselves and others. Through a series of large-scale paintings and drawings, Rădvan masterfully captures the raw essence of human existence, challenging viewers to confront their own perceptions of identity and intimacy.

The exhibition could be visited from Tuesday to Friday from 13:00 until 18:00 o’clock and Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 until 17:00 o’clock. In other timeframe by appointment at info@anaidartgallery.com or at +49 (0) 172 40 44 166.

The solo show “Warme Haut/Warm Skin” signed by Alexandru Rădvan is the fourth pop-up exhibition of Anaid Art Gallery in Baden-Baden, in the framework of the anniversary year "20 years of Anaid Art Gallery 2004 - 2024". The gallerist Diana Dochia declares: “After every ten years, I made a change in the life of the gallery, because change means evolution: 2004 - Bucharest I 2015 - Berlin I 2024 - Baden-Baden”.

In the work of the artist Alexandru Rădvan the body is seen in various positions, states, contexts and situations, describing a pleasure of desire, of touching, of the act itself. Designed on the binomial "nude/nudity" and "naked/nakedness", the exhibition "Warme Haut/Warm Skin" continues the concerns of recent years regarding the body, the desires and the intimacy of passionate-reflexive moments. The works are circumscribed in an area representing a personal narrative, a kind of intimate diary, where the viewer becomes a self-contained voyeur in the pictorial context. The large, big painting – over 3 meters - "6 A.M.", conceived as a panoramic image, represents a moment of peace, tranquility, and sensual communication between two beings as if situated out of time and space. The pleasure of touching, the tactile feeling, the sensation induced by reverie and laziness confer a degree of sumptuousness, which does not lack reminders of mythological scenes and nudes represented in the history of universal art.

The artist testified to this new series of paintings and drawings: "The scent of your skin, the warmth of mine. The words of our endless small talk, the long silent moments. My fingers in your hair, eyes half closed and two drops of sweat. All monumental and unforgettable".

The representation of the body suggests something both physical and imaginary; this leads to the idea that "bodily integrity" is not all material; it also has an immaterial side, an absent presence, turning the body into a concept. Paul Schilder[1] and Elaine Scarry[2] consider that when we talk about bodies, these cannot be limited only to skin; they also incorporate the external things in our image, thus expanding the self. Should we look at the drawings from the "Skin" series from this angle, where the characters are often represented sleeping or in a semi-awake state, the body has a sexual charge enhanced by the idea of ​​eroticism and fragility.

The exhibition "Warme Haut/Warm Skin" is about eroticism, touching, the pleasure of being together, about memories, wishes, forgotten things and why not, about love in a state of daydreaming. Daydream love is perhaps the most sincere and warm form of love.

For more information, please visit www.anaidartgallery.com or contact Diana Dochia, PhD, at info@anaidartgallery.com.

Alexandru Rădvan (b. 1977, Bucharest) is a graduate of the University of Arts Bucharest, Faculty of Painting, class of Prof. Florin Mitroi and lecturer at the University's Department of Painting. With a PhD in "Image Science" conferred by the University of Bucharest, Alexandru Rădvan began to exhibit constantly since the end of 1998 and became one of the leading representatives of contemporary Romanian art in the 2000s. With numerous solo and group exhibitions, Alexandru Rădvan has exhibited in contemporary art centers, museums and galleries in Berlin, New York, Rome, and Paris, along modern and contemporary important artists as Pablo Picasso, Georg Baselitz, Andres Serrano, Berlinde De Bruyckere, Yinka Shonibare.  Selected group and solo shows: "Skin to Skin", Museum of Art Constanţa (2024), "The Picasso effect. Picasso's influence on Romanian art in the 1960s", Museum of Recent Art, Bucharest (2023); "Days of a Colossus", Museum of Art, Craiova (2023); "Thoughts about Sun and a Myth", Nicolae Minovici Museum, Bucharest (2022), "Mythical Flesh", Anaid Art Gallery, Berlin (2021); "Untouchable Love", Anaid Art Gallery, Berlin (2018); "Divine decadence" Kasteel van Gaasbeek, Gaasbeek (2016); "Artistic Education in Bucharest and Romanian Art after 1950", National Museum of Contemporary Art (MNAC), Bucharest (2015); "Badly Happy", Marina Abramović Institute West (The Performance Art Institute), San Francisco (2010); "Messiahs", Modem-Center for Modern and Contemporary Art, Debrecen (2009). His works can be found in important public and private collections in Romania, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Israel, France, Italy, Greece and the USA. Since 2005 he has been represented by Anaid Art Gallery.

Altes Dampfbad, located in the heart of Baden-Baden, is a historic venue renowned for its cultural significance and architectural beauty. The space offers a unique setting for contemporary art exhibitions, blending classical elegance with modern artistic innovation. Baden-Baden is a UNESCO heritage site, where you can find the most beautiful mixture between old buildings and contemporary art museums and exhibitions.

Anaid Art Gallery, founded in 2004 by the art historian Diana Dochia, PhD, is dedicated to promoting contemporary art and supporting innovative artists from around the world. Known for its forward-thinking exhibitions and diverse programming, the gallery has established itself as a vital platform for contemporary artistic expression. This year Anaid Art Gallery celebrates 20 Years on the market of international contemporary art. Starting as a contemporary art gallery in Bucharest in 2004, in a former communist country, being in that moment the 3^rd established private gallery in the hole country (Romania); Anaid Art Gallery opened a second gallery in 2015 in the heart of Berlin. In 2024 the headquarter of the gallery moved to the beautiful cultural city of Baden-Baden.

Diana Dochia, PhD

Curator / Gallerist

Anaid Art Gallery

Stresemannstr. 12

76530 Baden-Baden

Mobile: +49 (0) 172 40 44 166

E-mail: info@anaidartgallery.com