The Romanian Cultural Institute in New York, in collaboration with Nicodim Gallery, presents an evening exploring the complex relationship between art, political power, and cultural transformation in Romania, from the communist era to the present, and the transatlantic exchanges that have shaped its international presence.
Taking place at Nicodim Gallery, the event marks the New York launches of three significant publications: Visual Arts in Romania 1945–1989: With an Addendum 1990–2020 (Romanian Cultural Institute Publishing House, 2022), by Magda Cârneci; Zona Festival (PUNCH, 2025), by Ileana Pintilie; and ARTA magazine’s special double issue The American Dream (Nos. 78–79/2026), coordinated by Gabriela Mateescu and Charles Moore.
Bringing together Magda Cârneci, art historian, critic, and Editor-in-Chief of ARTA; Ileana Pintilie, professor, art historian, curator, and founder of the pioneering Zona performance art festival; Gabriela Mateescu, artist and Managing Editor of ARTA; and Irina Protopopescu, founder of New York’s SLAG Gallery, the evening will feature a conversation with Charles Moore, co-coordinator of ARTA’s special double issue The American Dream. Together, they will explore artistic experimentation under authoritarian rule, the profound transformations that followed 1989, and the networks of migration, exchange, and collaboration that have connected Romanian artists and gallerists to the international art world.
Moving between historical inquiry and contemporary perspectives, the conversation will examine how shifts in political power have transformed the conditions of artistic production, opened new possibilities for experimentation, and reshaped the ways Romanian art circulates internationally. Particular attention will be given to the evolving connections between Romania and the United States, and to the artists, institutions, and cultural networks that have shaped this transatlantic dialogue.
Event venue
Nicodim Gallery, 15 Greene St, New York, NY 10013, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.