"The 19th century residence with its granaries, mill, stables and administrative buildings is situated just a few kilometers off the Danube forming the natural boarder between Romania and Bulgaria and some 70 kilometers from Serbia. The time it takes to get there is the exact time your mind needs to de-clutter from everyday life. Because the artist residence CetateArtsDanube Dr. Joana Grevers founded on her family's old property in Cetate (once it was restored to the family after the end of Communism) is an extraordinarily rich experience, visually, aesthetically, intellectually, culturally and even gastronomically. Grevers' sensitivity for the place is all-encompassing: bit by bit always new parts of the property are caringly restored or rebuild, she has a knowledge of what food, what rhythm, what characters are beneficial and constructive for the atmosphere of the place. The isolation and simultaneous abundance of the place (created by nature and the Fundatia Joana Grevers) is a fertile ground for great results. This year's artists were Mihail Cosuletu, Stefan Radu Crețu, Albert Kaan, Adina Mocanu, Stefan Petrica and Miki Velciov.
Such as every summer in the past nine years, Cetate Arts Danube, an artist residency, takes place in a 19th century Romanian estate close to the river. A former cereal barn has been turned into artists' ateliers for those invited by Joana Grevers – the organizer of this event and owner of 418gallery. Stefan Radu Cretu, Albert Kaan, Constantin Luser, Ignazio Mortellaro, Stefan Papco, Diet Sayler and Petrica Stefan are attending this year. The columns and the little tower of the estate mirror a neoclassicist architecture, and with the silence, the pink colour of the evening sky and the occasional birdsound, one can easily feel like in Tuscany. This year the group of Romanian and foreign international artists has the opportunity to meet the attendees of the curatorial workshop "Art in Context" for five days at the estate and to exchange ideas and drinks. Delicious Sicilian food is prepared for them at every day time, by the cook Caterina Guardino from Sciacca.
Joana Grevers Foudation has the pleasure of announcing the 9th edition of the Residency which takes place between August 5th – August 26th at Barbu Druga Castle in Cetate, Dolj county in Southern Romania. The vision of the Joana Grevers Foundation upon this generous place, on so many levels, has the desire, not only to present Romanian contemporary art in a professional way, but also to create the proper environment for art-making and art promoting. This place is thought to be part of the Danubian tourism and to be included on the venues map for travelers on the Danube, thus transforming a former agricultural place into a space of culture and touristic attraction.
Joana Grevers Foudation has the pleasure of announcing the 8th edition of Cetate Arts Danube Artist in Residence starting 05th to 23rd of August 2015 at Barbu Druga Mansion in Cetate, Dolj county, southern Romania.
Unlike ever before, this edition is entirely dedicated to Sculpture and features four artists: three Romanian artists from different generations: Stefan Radu Cretu (Sibiu), Cristian Raduta (Bucharest) and Napoleon Tiron (Bucharest). And, as every year, the residency has an invited artist from abroad : the sculptor Simon Iurino from Vienna, former student of professor Heimo Zobernig.
Another premiere this year is the support of AFCN. For the first time since 2008 the annual residency organised by the Joana Grevers Foundation receives financial support from the Administration of the National Cultural Heritage.
Joana Grevers Foundation announces the seventh edition of Cetate Arts Danube Artists-in-Residence, taking place from July 25th to August 15th, 2014 at Barbu Druga Mansion in Cetate, Dolj county, southern Romania.
The seventh edition (invite-only) features five artists working in different media – Anca Bodea (Cluj-Napoca, Painting), Raphaelle Boutie (special guest from Paris, Painting and Drawing), Stefan Radu Cretu (Sibiu, Kinetic Art), Cristian Raduta (Bucharest, Sculpture, Installation) and Petrica Stefan (special guest from Timisoara, Painting).
The artworks from the residency are to be shown at 418 Contemporary Art Gallery Bucharest later this year.
This year the Druga estate whitnesed an exeptional event. For the first time since the begining of the Cetate art workshop series, on the 15th of August, a retrospective exhibition was opened showing the works of the artists hostetd at Cetate in the past 6 years. Also the old smith`s shop was transformed into a beatiufull chapel folowing the project of the architect Alexandra Afrasinei and was also inaugurated and baptised in the same day as the name of the chapel is "Sfanta Maria". Guests from Romania, Germany, Switzerland and USA joined the special events and bouned to come back on this danubian land.
The fact that the workshop came to its fifth edition is a strong argument that this place is challenging the artists, is "corrupting" them into working in plain-air, is getting them out of their shell and brings them together in a long-summer-story, overheard and over tolled in the long nights at the Druga villa, debating contemporary art at a wooden table.
At the fourth edition of Cetate workshop new artists were welcomed in the quiet but intense beauty of Cetate. The American artist Maggie Michael was at her first visit to the Romanian Danube sites and bowed to come back to enjoy the freedom of creating in a wild and vivid place. As for the sculptor Stefan Radu Cretu`s moving beasts, the site couldn't be more appropriate. Once you get here you start to fantasize about what Cetate could become in the future… but we are all glad for what is already here!
The third edition of the workshop intended to bring artists closer to the Barbu Druga mansion. They slowly slipped into its raw and mysterious beauty. Their works are meant to build up also an artistic estate inspired by this old piece of southern Danubian Romania.
The second art workshop at Cetate laid the foundations for what Joana Grevers has in mind for this place to become in the course of time. A place for a Romanian artistic movement, a place for art exhibition, especially painting and sculpture, a place for discourse and debate about contemporary art and a place for international Danubian cultural exchange.
The idea of an art workshop organized in Cetate appeared spontaneously after a conversation between Joana Grevers and the painter Romul Nutiu, who suggested that this place could successfully welcome many artists to create here, breaking any preconception about art and about themselves as creators. Free creation only. This was the first step towards the renaissance of this wonderful family estate, after a period of alienation that lasted nearly 60 years.