Adrian Cojocaru

Lives and works in Iași, Romania

Artist statement

When I left my job as a copywriter to pursue art full time, all I wanted was to distance myself from text, saturated colors and big panels. Later on, I realized that what I was rejecting had already found its place unconsciously in my practice, only this time it had a purpose. The focus shifted from highlighting the consumption of goods to the celebration of human activity. I have always been fascinated by behind-the-scenes processes and wanted to understand the inner workings, which is probably what initially led me to the field of advertising, but I soon disliked the established system. I realized the difference between advertising and art is the first understands how human mind works, while the latter questions it. The images that I incorporate into my compositions have a different purpose. I try to give them a new life and to provide an alternate context in which they can flourish. By fully committing to the craft of painting and the traditional medium, I try to escape the rush of contemporary life. My paintings consist of figurative scenes built on by layers of oil glazing, impasto, scrapping parts that reveal drawings made with carbon paper, watercolor and finished on by using encaustic for certain elements or sifting pigment on top. In my work I activate the setting space by gluing overlooked elements from my personal archive, built by walking through the city, with found imagery from art history, internet culture and political discourses. Often misplaced, each...

Artwork