About

Alexandru Darida is an artist known for his pioneering social activist art. His work includes oil paintings, drawings, and acrylic sculpture that speak to such diverse subjects as the promotion of stem cell research and the politically charged relationship of man with nature.

Darida considers art to be “the soul of the people” and feels that “if you touch people’s hearts then that art will stay forever”. His style is closely associated with the chiaroscuro technique initially pioneered by Leonardo da Vinci, further developed by Caravaggio, and finally perfected by Rembrandt to achieve a dramatic intensification of action or atmospheric mood with a dimension of psychological depth.

The post-romantic art of Alexandru Darida harks back to the radiance of medieval illuminations. Claudia Moscovici in “Romanticism and Postromanticism”, writes: “”Darida’s women are allegorical phantasms that populate our childhood fantasies and dreams. His application of paint is both delicate and rough; soft plays of light and shadow highlight the luminosity of gold. At the same time, the vitality of heavy, swirling paint applied with a palette knife endow his paintings with a modern feel”.

Darida’s style has become refined over the years, with many of his works featuring, or even being applied to, musical instruments and/or incorporating natural and manmade objects as part of what has become to be known as “Vibrant Expression.” Darida exhibits a seamless transition from one medium and subject to another, and he sees a correlation between the message he seeks to convey and the medium of the art form. Hence, he chooses the medium of acrylic for his sculptures that are influenced in their form by the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncuși (1876-1957), because it is transparent, just as you can see through the many layers of thin glazes that he applies in his paintings. The contemporary vibrant expression is described by Sarah Seamark, Editor in Chief of Art World, in the May 2008 issue: “Darida utilizes found objects that merge elements of abstract and sculptural forms that represents a reconciliation with self and our surroundings. Their use, in combination with Darida’s classic painting technique, is designed to create a distinguished, forward-looking style.”

Due to his passion for music and philosophy, as well as his restless temperament and craving to discover an ideal of purity, his subjects are in a state of constant flux. Darida tackles such controversial issues as stem cell research, renewable green energy sources, man’s place in relation to nature, and music related to the cosmic forces. The color – or absence of color – shape and meaning of his work all has its roots in a certain universal energy. This force runs through all of Darida’s work as he extends his earlier artistic exploration of man and nature to the hot issues of the environment, global warming, and green energy. He sees the subjects as interlinked with stem cell research in that the quality of the future of mankind, indeed all of life on earth, is at stake on these fronts. In the process of addressing powerful philosophies and ideals on such topics he seeks through his artwork to create a buzz and encourage dialogue – hence his moniker of artist as social activist.