The memorial house of one of the most important Romanian poets, Ion Minulescu, is actually a large apartament, and can be found on Bvd Dr Gheorghe Marinescu, No 19, second floor, apartament no 12. It's whole name is "Ion Minulescu and Claudia Millian Memorial House", the museum (opened in 1991) trying to present the atmosphere in which the poet worked and lived.
It's collections are rich and varied : manuscripts, letters, documents, photographs, some personal objects of Minulescu - alongside his writing tools - a large collection of books and magazines of the family, as well as an impressive collection of paintings, signed by some of the greatest names in 20th century Romanian art, completed by a small collection of sculpture and Oriental art. You can also admire the vast collection of icons, engravings, ceramics. It seems that the poet and his wife were passionat collectors of art.
The five rooms of the apartament are a fabulous museum, a space out of today's time, a place where everything seems to have frozen in the past, in the years when Minulescu was at his best. At the start, the visitors have the chance of admiring some of the best works in the memorial's house painting collection, mostly Romanian artists, alongside a few graphic compositions of Iosif Iser or Jean Steriadi. Also, in the hallway, you can find several works by Pallady or Nicolae Darascu. The few statues - depicting Claudia Millian - and wooden objects complete the image. In the rooms this varied and rich collection is presented in all it's beauty : Alexandru Ciucurencu, Margareta Sterian, Camil Ressu Lucian Grigorescu and many others. Only the best of interwar - and a little later - names in Romanian art are present here, as the poet and his wife were good friends to most of them.
Also of great interest are the collection of icons, the hundreds of books from the poet's collection, most of them very valuable and rare today, some manuscripts, photographs and notes, as well as the selection of personal objects. It is a pity that the memorial house is not very popular, as it is more than interesting both for the fans of the author and those who are interested in the artworks presented here. Many of the paintings in the house are really valuable, such as the portrait of Ion Minulescu, signed by Victor Brauner or that made by Camil Ressu. This one was actually one of the last portraits of the writer, made in 1942, and it values at least a few tens of thousands dollars. Even more, it seems.
Minulescu knew most of the younger Romanian artists, after befriending Ressu, Petrascu, Steriadi in Paris, where he completed his studies in his youth. Later, as a longtime director in the Arts Ministry and a member of the jury of official art saloons, Minulescu also befriended several others artists. He often bought works signed by them or received important works as gifts, and it was usual for the artists to spend some time with the Minulescu family.
The Minulescu Memorial House is one of those obscure, yet very interesting places in Bucharest, always expecting one or another visitor, but unfortunatelly these are very few. A pity, for a trek in the creative universe of Minulescu is always a gain.
imagine: /ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Ion_Minulescu_din_București#/media/File:Casa_Ion_Minulescu-1.JPG
2007-12-17
