Selbin Savin
Serban Savu
Born in Romania in 1978, Savin's images give a sense of indifference, or voyeurism. As part of a new generation of Romanian artists, Savin used paintings to express a collective awakening to the utopian ideals of the old regime, while also expressing doubts about the new capitalist order. The people in his paintings live in idyllic scenery, destroyed by the remains of residential buildings and abandoned factories during Soviet rule.
65-0944-2 oil on canvas 40 x 30cm 2009
The Weeping Willow oil on canvas 150cm x 193cm 2018
Selbin Savin lives in Cluj, Romania, where he worked in a former brush processing plant. His subject matter is the environment, characters and scenes of his life, sometimes real and sometimes fictional. Under the influence of history, knowledge and circumstances— the country in which he lived after a change in the polity, or, in his words, "a failed utopia." ”
The Giant oil on board 49cm x 40cm 2018
Icarus oil on board 75 x 80cm 2018
Prometheus, oil on canvas 112 × 91 cm 2019
His soft and silent style creates a sense of distance, and he uses a direct, unpretentious way to depict subjects like a monitor, presenting a world that is both convincingly real and distant. Events are always expected by reason. The characters in the picture are figurative, but have no names or faces. Everything was calm, maybe sometimes silent.
The Cement Fountain，oil on canvas 74.5 x 62cm 2018
Flora，oil on board 47 x 59.5cm 2018
The New Forest, Oil on canvas 60 × 80 cm 2020
Interview with Serban Savu
Rob Colvin=RC: Why did you become an artist?
Serban Savu=SS: I think I have no choice but to paint because I wanted to be a painter since I was five years old. My family supports me so I don't have to fight with others to achieve my goals. I have an older brother who is a year older than me, who grew up with me in the same socio-cultural context and who became an IT specialist. So you draw your own conclusions.
The City is Being Built and Flourishes 2，oil on canvas 156 x 194cm 2017
Hombeam egg tempera and oil on board 42 x 30cm 2017
Gloomy day, acrylic on board 35 × 35 cm 2019
RC: Can you talk about what you've been doing along the way and what you're doing now?
After I finished my studies, I didn't know anything about what was happening in the contemporary art world, and of course, I didn't know what my paintings could say. At that time, the Internet was just getting started in Romania, and travel was difficult because a visa was required to go to all Western European countries. The most important thing is that I don't have any money either. When I received a two-year research grant from the Romanian government to study in Venice... I won't tell you my life story here, but my conclusion is that when I returned to Cruy's home, I found that I could draw something that I had been interested in since I was a teenager, but I didn't expect me to be able to present it smoothly. It's like the story in One Thousand and One Nights, about a man who travels home and finds the treasure he's been looking for hidden under the roots of an olive tree in his back garden.
Now I use reality to make it more meaningful.
The Last Embracement，oil on board 33.5 x 40cm 2017
The Magician，oil on board 35 x 50cm 2017
Abstract Composition, Oil on canvas 30 x 40 x 3.5 cm 2019
RC: Have you ever been particularly influenced by anyone or thing?
I always associate painting with literature. In order to learn to speak, you need to learn the language from your parents. To write a novel, it is not enough to know how to speak. I think one needs to start with literature and read a lot of books to have an idea of how to write a novel. I did the same job in painting, I visited art museums around the world and bought art books for artists I liked. But after living in Venice for two years, I fell in love with Venetian painting. Painters like Giorgione, Bellini, Titian, Veronese or Tintoretto, to name a few, are all figures I admire.
Garden Stakes oil on board 50 x 41cm 2017
Blackout oil on canvas 50 x 35cm 2016
Bertha, oil on canvas 192 x 157 cm 2017
RC: What were the impressive challenges along the way?
Because I need to be "on the spot" looking for inspiration or collecting material for my paintings, sometimes I put myself in a weird situation. For example, two weeks ago, at midnight, I was speeding and wanted to catch a truck because I was interested in its very attractive Romanian headlights. It's an impressive thing that looks like an altar floating on the road. I chased the truck for 20 kilometers, but when I overtook it in order to capture that picture, I found that I had chased the wrong car, it was a normal and boring truck, so I chased it for half a day.
Etemal Green，oil on canvas 100 x 150cm 2016
The Guardian，oil on canvas 175 x 223cm 2015
Satyr and Nymph at Schlachtensee, Oil on canvas 121.9 × 158.8 cm 2016
RC: If you could own any piece of art, which one would you most like to want?
If I could have any work of art in the world, it would be Titian's Diana and Actaeon (1556-1559) at the National Gallery in London.
There are many reasons why I like this painting. I remember seeing it for the first time a few years ago at the National Gallery in London. I was struck by the light and shadow of the women in the middle ground, a very important detail that I hadn't noticed before when I looked at the album. For me, this paradox, a glowing shadow, is the key to getting deep into the painting. Since I was able to read it, I was fascinated by the mythology of ancient Greece, and I was certainly struck by the subject matter of this masterpiece.
The Allegory of Painting，oil on canvas 155 x 220cm 2015
This is not a painting,oil on canvas 220 x 174 cm 2015
Homeless, Oil on board 30 × 26 cm 2014
Another of Titian's works, He Death of Actaeon (circa 1559 – 1575), represents a continuation of this story, which is also on display at the National Gallery, and it is an honor to see them at the same time. From the first painting, the viewer can interpret the tragic fate of Actaeon by observing the stag skull at the top of the column. After Actaeon discovers the secret baths of the goddess Diana, as punishment, he is turned into a stag by Diana and chased to death by his own hounds.
Electric Man，oil on board 33.5 x 28 cm 2015
Silent Gathering，oil on board 24 x 35cm 2014
“Mud” 35x50cm, oil on canvas 2012
Titian, “Diana and Actaeon” (1556–1559)
But in addition to these reflections on the subject matter, this painting is a masterpiece of composition, color harmony, and painting technique. The whole scene looks like a dramatic scene: Actaeon is pulling back the red curtains, while Diana is covering herself in a confrontational position. In this way, the scene is exposed, and the focus is on the naked body in the middle. I think the painting can also be interpreted as a tribute to nudity – a very practical concept from ancient Greece and the Renaissance – with an extra layer of erotic, typical Titian creation. I also like the way Titian uses color. The painting looks colorful, but in fact only a few colors are used: four reds, two blues, a little green, a warm hue of the skin, and some earth tones. But all the colors are so shocking, for example, red, some of which are obtained by juxtaposing multiple layers of different shades to produce an optical effect more complex than a simple opaque color. We already know that the Venetians used the finest paint of their time.
Blocks and Gardens，oil on canvas 150 x 190cm 2012
Procession oil on canvas 35 x 50 cm 2011
Epiphany oil on canvas 35 x 50 cm 2011
Sometimes, when I'm walking in the forest—not to go hunting, but to pick mushrooms—I like to imagine myself as Actaon, the surprising moment when he finds several young ladies bathing in a secret bath in the woods.
Walnut Sesson，oil on canvas 35 x 50cm 2011
Pleasant Chat，oil on canvas 35 x 45cm 2010
Upheaval, Oil on canvas 58 x 75 cm 2020
RC: So what exactly is art?
Honestly, I don't ask myself this question anymore because I'm not interested in finding answers or definitions. My practice reflects a lack of interest and does not focus on questioning the idea of art or expanding its limitations.
Summer Kitchen，oil on canvas 130 x 106 cm 2009
The Cage， oil on canvas 50 x 35cm 2009
The Chariot Driver， oil on canvas 30 x 40 cm 2009
Untitled oil on canvas 14 x 26cm 2009
No Trains coming，oil on canvas 180 x 112cm 2009
Deep into the Valley，oil on canvas 91 x 130cm 2009
The Lathe Man，oil on canvas 160 x 123cm 2009
The Founoundry，oil on canvas 32 x 50 cm 2009
Parking，oil on canvas 63 x 100 cm 2008
Icarus，oil on canvas 110 x 170cm 2008
The Shepherd，oil on canvas 80 x 75.5cm 2008
Eariy Days of Summer oil on canvas 20 x 30cm 2008
In the Shadow on the Dam，146 x 123cm 2008
The Football Game，oil on canvas 80 x 120 cm 2007
Weekend oil on canvas 64 x 100cm 2007
Prahova Valley，oil on canvas 35 x 50 cm 2007
Herastrau 3 oil on canvas 26 x 42.5cm 2006
May Not，oil on canvas 40 x 50cm 2006
Space，the Final Frontier ，oil on canvas 40 x 50cm 2006
Haze on the Dam, Oil on canvas 104.1 × 139.7 × 5.1 cm 2013
Heroes, Saints and Other Figures
"Library Art" video number recommendation
Chinese-American artist Chen Zhen and his installations
Process and sporadic
Methodological construction of Chinese contemporary artists
PROCESS AND INCIDENT
THE METHODOLOGICAL CONSTRUCTION OF CONTEMPORARY CHINESE ARTISTS
This issue focuses on "methodology" and deeply analyzes the whole process of artists' conception and creation;
A sample of 13 representative contemporary artists;
<h1 toutiao-origin="h2" > limited edition edition booklet of "Li Yuhuan and Wang Shuye Dialogues", which was released simultaneously</h1>;
Comprehensive review of the second issue of "Library Art" "Free Painting Workshop";
The "Youth Minimalism" section is included to show the rich and diverse creative outlook of the young generation.