Artist
Ana Cristina Irian
Milieu
The purpose of this experimental endeavor is to attempt to understand and illustrate how fragile personal objects, such as doilies and photographs, can be used to communicate, preserve memories, and evoke visual narratives in interpersonal contexts. It aims to intertwine the female and male gaze by juxtaposing the woman’s doilies with photographs taken by her husband and grandson.
Ileana was a homemaker, she looked after the house and her family her entire life. In her spare time, she liked to crochet doilies ("milieuri" in Romanian, popularly known as "mileuri") with other friends.
Ileana lived for 90 years. Among her personal belongings she left behind several doilies crafted by herself and a series of family photographs taken by her husband and grandson showing her at different ages, from the age of 21 until the age of 84.
Photographs and personal objects from the family collection owned by Mr. Cristian Bassa were used within the project.
The idea of a family photograph woven into a doily started from a project about the needlework practiced by Romanian women in the last century.
I chose nine portraits of Ileana that were taken along her lifetime at different ages. As she aged, I wove more of her photos into the doilies, believing that with age, she could be more readily recognised in her works.
The word "milieu" was included in the Dictionary of Romanian Language, Volume VI, under the letter M (1965-1968). The doily has an ornamental function, but it also protects objects in the domestic space.
The doily (eng.)/ milieu (ro.)/ napperon (fr.) has a long history that initially places it as a clothing accessory, which then migrates from the human body into the domestic space, on pieces of furniture. The doily acts as a membrane that rounds, delineates permeable boundaries, yet covers and reveals certain surfaces of a domestic space, like an extension of a female body.
Anca Punct – the artist behind the project Raw Photography and Other Magical Territories: A Focused Journey – has been selected for FUTURES due to her innovative and boundary-pushing approach to visual expression. By combining traditional raw photography with AI technology and mixed media techniques, the artist demonstrates a deep understanding of the intersection between nature and digital innovation.
Cosmin Gârleșteanu, the photographer behind the project Prismagination, has been selected due to the innovative and thought-provoking nature of his work. By skillfully using prisms to capture captivating real-life moments, he demonstrates a unique and imaginative approach to photography that challenges conventional perceptions. The photographer's ability to blend technical skill with artistic vision demonstrates a mastery of his craft.
Cristina Irian has been selected due to her unique and innovative approach to visual storytelling. By exploring the use of fragile personal objects like doilies and photographs to communicate and preserve memories, she brings a fresh perspective to the art of photography. Her focus on intertwining the female and male gazes adds depth to the work, offering a thought-provoking exploration of gender dynamics and intergenerational connections.
Elena Corbu has been selected as one of the FUTURES artists due to her unique ability to capture the essence of the inner journey and innate gifts through photography. Her portfolio demonstrates a deep understanding of the metamorphic nature of the creative process, going beyond mere aesthetics and technicalities to convey profound meaning and emotion through her work.
Georgiana Feidi has been selected due to her profound exploration of the theme of meditation through visual art. Her work delves into the concepts of meditation, self-discovery and the transformative nature of artistic creation. By intentionally depersonalising the human presence in photographs and using wide frames to emphasise the relationship between the individual and the universe, the photographer creates a visually striking and thought-provoking representation of the human experience.
