Announcing representation of Cătălin Pîslaru
Gaep announces representation of Cătălin Pîslaru (b. 1988, Chișinău). The Düsseldorf-based artist is known for his minimalistic, yet colorful approach to visual aesthetics, manifested in paintings that build mysterious narratives. His work has been shown recently at Nir Altman (Munich) and Schierke Seinecke Gallery (Frankfurt). The artist’s first solo exhibition with Gaep – and his first in Bucharest – will open in autumn 2023. He is also represented by the German gallery Nir Altman.
Pîslaru works in series that are prompted by his fascination with color and drawing, and are fed by a well-calibrated discourse about space, harmony, and tension. He sketches his compositions digitally and then builds them with delicate lines that meet pigment-thick contours of monochrome shapes. The resulting works preserve the neatness of the digital visual language, but also show the marks of classic painting techniques.
While not based on figurative elements that are later abstracted, the series unfold stories that the artist himself discovers almost simultaneously with the viewer, reveling in their openness to interpretation. Adding to the enigmatic character of the narratives, Cătălin Pîslaru conceives of poetic titles – a creative expression that runs parallel to his visual practice.
Andrei Breahnă, Gaep’s co-founder, says: “Cătălin Pîslaru searches for ways to expand the medium of painting beyond the canvas. He experiments with alu-dibond, HPL panels, different industrial materials, often in combination with traditional ones, confronting himself with new possibilities constantly. His visual storytelling integrates a vibrant use of color, conceptual construction of drawing and subtle formal humor. I know his work will resonate with our audiences.”
Born in 1988 in Chișinău, Republic of Moldova, Cătălin Pîslaru moved at age 18 to Italy. He earned his master’s degree at Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma in 2013 and then completed his Meisterschüler studies in 2018 at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich under the guidance of prof. Florian Pumhösl. After graduation he moved to Düsseldorf to start an artistic practice that would marry the precision instilled by formal education with his innate sense of humor. Pîslaru has had solo exhibitions at Nir Altman in Munich and Schierke Seinecke in Frankfurt. His work has also been shown at Galerie der Künstler in Munich, NRW Forum Düsseldorf, and Les Abattoirs, Musée – Frac Occitanie in Toulouse, among other places. He is the winner of Tacker Prize (2018, Galerie der Künstler, Munich) and of Vanni #artistroom Prize (2021, Artissima, Turin) and a finalist of Hans Purrmann Prize of the City of Speyer (2021).
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Images: Cătălin Pîslaru, Unfunctional Activities #15, 2023, tempera on paper mounted on HPL panel, 42 x 29.7 cm (1); portrait of Cătălin Pîslaru, photo by Lars Monshausen (2)
