PULS 20

PULS 20 unites the most valuable finds from a communal treasure hunt. Exponents of the Romanian arts scene and representatives of the National Museum of Contemporary Art (MNAC) in Bucharest teamed up to review the oeuvres of countless eminent Romanian artists and select works of outstanding quality that reflect the diversity of the country’s creative production over the past fifty years. In time for the celebrations of MNAC’s twentieth anniversary in 2020, the institution acquired the 180 works reproduced in this catalogue. That makes PULS 20 a singular document in two respects: it gathers a selection of key works of Romanian art that is unprecedented in its breadth between the covers of a book; and it is the result of a successful cooperative curatorial process, an organic discourse involving a wide variety of participants, demonstrating that democratic dialogue in art is not just possible but also extraordinarily fruitful and indeed necessary. All in all, this catalogue is the perfect choice both for newcomers to Romanian contemporary art and for specialists.

Ruxandra Demetrescu, art historian, is professor of art history and theory at the Department of Dotoral Studies of the National University of Arts in Bucharest, Romania, where she teaches art theory, museum studies and modern Romanian art. She was the Rector of the National University of Arts in Bucharest (2006- 2012) and the first Director of the Romanian Cultural Institute in Berlin, Germany (1999- 2003). Her research focuses are the history of art theories in the German-speaking space (Konrad Fiedler, Alois Riegl, Aby Warburg, Walter Benjamin) and Romanian inter-war artistic modernity. With a background in art history and theory, Calin Dan is a writer, visual artist and curator. He is an internationally recognized member of the post-conceptual group subREAL and author of the long-term research project " Emotional Architecture" . After 1989, he was an advisor to the Mondrian and Pro Helvetia foundations, editor-in-chief of Arta/Art magazine and artistic director of the Soros Center for Contemporary Art, Bucharest. He is currently director of the National Museum of Contemporary Art (MNAC) and visiting professor at the National University of Arts in Bucharest.