Artwork
Nevralgie
Nevralgie is an unspecified painting by Gheorghiu Val. It dates from 1984 and is held in the collection of the Moldova National Museum Complex.
About this work
Overview
The piece is presented as the reverse side of a canvas, revealing a faded beige surface stretched over a wooden stretcher.
Nevralgie is an artwork attributed to the Romanian artist Val Gheorghiu, dated approximately to 1984. The piece is presented as the reverse side of a canvas, revealing a faded beige surface stretched over a wooden stretcher. Handwritten annotations in ink appear along the top edge, identifying the artist, the title—Nevralgie, the French term for neuralgia—and the work’s dimensions in centimeters. A blue institutional stamp marked M.I. 3499 is affixed to the lower margin.
Subject & Meaning
The title Nevralgie suggests an engagement with the experience of nerve pain, implying a thematic focus on physical or emotional suffering. While the front of the canvas is not visible, the back’s labeling indicates the artist’s intention to foreground the condition of neuralgia, possibly as a metaphor for broader human affliction.
Technique & Style
The reverse side displays a plain, aged beige canvas, its surface bearing the marks of time and handling. The wooden frame beneath the fabric is typical of traditional stretcher constructions, and the ink handwriting is informal, offering a personal, documentary quality rather than a formal cataloguing approach.
History & Provenance
The presence of the blue stamp bearing the code M.I. 3499 points to institutional registration, likely within a museum or collection inventory system. The handwritten notes suggest the work has been catalogued directly by the artist or an early caretaker, indicating a provenance that includes at least one formal acquisition.
Context
Created in the mid‑1980s, Nevralgie emerges from a period when Eastern European artists were increasingly exploring personal and bodily themes amid broader sociopolitical shifts. The use of a medical term as title aligns with contemporary interests in the body as a site of artistic inquiry.
Artist & collection
Artist
Gheorghiu Val made prints and paintings in a raw, direct style that feels like a punch to the ribs.
