Victor Brauner (1903–1966) was born in Piatra Neamț and established himself, in the 1920s, as a symbolic figure of the Bucharest avant-garde. In 1933, Brauner joined the surrealist movement initiated by André Breton, and in 1938 he permanently moved to Paris. That is also the place where the artist accidentally loses an eye. Because he had painted himself many years before in a self-portrait with an enucleated eye, he thus became known as the "visionary painter" of the Surrealist movement, capable of premonitions.
The retrospective exhibition aims to function as a tribute to this central figure, highly relevant to international surrealism. Bringing Brauner to his home country is a unique opportunity for visitors to discover these "premonitions" for the first time.
The curator of the exhibition, Camille Morando – director of documentation at the Center Pompidou and professor at the École du Louvre – has selected over 100 paintings, drawings, sculptures, illustrations and documents covering Brauner's entire artistic activity. The exhibition also includes an exceptional loan of over 50 works from the Center Pompidou.