Artwork
Blocuri noi în Constanța
Blocuri noi în Constanța is a print by Ion Mătăsăreanu. It is held in the collection of the Gavrila Simion Eco-Museum Research Institute Tulcea. The object is a rectangular canvas, dimensions noted as 60.
About this work
Overview
The object is a rectangular canvas, dimensions noted as 60.5 × 79.5 cm, currently devoid of any painted image. Its surface appears aged, bearing faint stains and minor marks that suggest handling over time. Handwritten annotations in pencil and red ink occupy the upper corners, including the title “Blocuri noi în Constanța” and catalog references such as “131” and “MD/286.”
Subject & Meaning
The penciled title indicates the work was intended to depict “new blocks” in the Romanian port city of Constanța, likely referring to recent urban development or architectural projects. Though the visual content is absent, the label suggests a documentary or representational purpose, possibly recording a phase of municipal expansion.
Technique & Style
No paint or drawing remains on the canvas, so the original medium cannot be determined. The presence of pencil and red‑ink notes points to a preparatory stage or a cataloguing process rather than a finished artwork. The canvas’s worn texture implies it may have been stored for an extended period before being de‑accessioned.
History & Provenance
The canvas bears a paper label identifying the Museum of Ethnography as its repository, indicating institutional ownership. Catalog numbers “131” and “MD/286” correspond to internal inventory systems, suggesting the piece entered the museum’s collection through acquisition, donation, or field documentation, though the exact date of entry is not recorded.
Context
Constanța, a major Black Sea port, experienced significant construction in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, with new residential and commercial blocks reshaping its urban landscape. An artwork with this title would have situated itself within that socio‑urban narrative, potentially serving as visual evidence of the city’s modernization for ethnographic or sociocultural study.
Artist & collection
Artist
Romanian painter and printmaker Ion Mătăsăreanu focused on the docks and new buildings of Constanța during the mid-20th century.
Museum
Gavrila Simion Eco-Museum Research Institute Tulcea
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