Nicolae Dărăscu

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Nicolae Dărăscu was a major painter of the post-impressionist period. After studying in Bucharest for a couple of years, he decided to continue his academic research and training in Paris. Together with the artists and teachers Camil Ressu, Ștefan Dimitrescu, Iosif Iser, Dimitrie Paciurea and Cornel Medrea, he founded the Romanian Art Association in Iasi. Master and professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bucharest, he guided countless generations of artists on the path of expression through art. He travelled a lot to the south of France and to Venice, where he gained a wealth of experience and a boundless admiration for Henri Matisse. Because he was always on the road, he started to paint in nature more than in the studio. During the years in which the work presented in the auction was created, Dărăscu had assimilated the style of Matisse in an extremely personal way. The artist used a vivid palette with reds, greens, yellows, blues and other strong colours that emphasised his own fascination with the Venetian mystery. As Nicolae Tonitza said, Dărăscu’s paintings seem to be made up of small mosaic pieces that compose a cohesive impressionist landscape. He creates these landscapes as if the motif itself is not the main subject but instead emphasises a play of vivid colours that highlight the subject.