Press Release in English: I Had Made So Great an Effort to Talk to Myself of a Hell Without Words_EN

Press Release in Romanian: I Had Made So Great an Effort to Talk to Myself of a Hell Without Words_RO

Ivan Gallery is pleased to invite you to the opening of the exhibition I Had Made So Great an Effort to Talk to Myself of a Hell Without Words on Thursday, 11 September, between 6:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.

Organised in collaboration with the Rumänisches Kulturinstitut Berlin, the exhibition will be open to the public from 11 September to 24 October 2025, in parallel with Berlin Art Week. I Had Made So Great an Effort to Talk to Myself of a Hell Without Words brings together the works of Giulia Crețulescu and Gavril Pop, active figures on the contemporary art scene in Romania.

The exhibition’s title refers to the novel The Passion According to G.H. by the writer Clarice Lispector and conveys a sense of tension that can be seen as a unifying theme in the artistic practices of Giulia Crețulescu and Gavril Pop. This tension is found in both concept and form, placing the two artists in constant dialogue. Both Giulia Crețulescu and Gavril Pop experiment with various media, using different materials and techniques. Their complementary practices have previously been presented to the public in exhibitions organised by Ivan Gallery, such as 1:1 in Bucharest and Variables as Absence of Uniformity, in collaboration with Wetterling Gallery in Stockholm.

Through Weapons and her textile works, Giulia Crețulescu uses structurality to give shape to her concepts. The stainless steel objects in the Weapons series are viewed by the artist as both the source of the wound and a remedy for healing; they are artefacts of pain. Through their materiality and geometrization, the textile works express temporality and continue the idea of defence. However, this time, defence is achieved gradually through contemplation in an era of speed and pressure.

Gavril Pop is interested in the violence of language, exploring the various ways in which conflict is represented and discussed. He is also concerned with things in a state of tension, on the verge of self-destruction and transformation. He works with textiles, drawing and painting, often recycling materials and restoring their functionality to create a space in which objects can exist in a new form.

Giulia Crețulescu (born in 1994 in Craiova, lives and works in Bucharest) graduated with a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Graphic Art and holds a PhD in Visual Studies from the National University of Arts in Bucharest, where she was also a Teaching Assistant in the Graphic Art department. Giulia Crețulescu has collaborated with venues in Bucharest (National Museum of Contemporary Art), Cluj-Napoca, as well as internationally, including in recent years: 2024 – Wild Card, Fragment Gallery, New York (solo exhibition); Variables as Absence of Uniformity, Wetterling Gallery, Stockholm (group exhibition); 2023 – Pickle Bar Presents: Slavs and Tatars, West Den Haag, Netherlands (group exhibition); Following the Body, Fragment Gallery, New York (group exhibition); A Human Being After All, EastContemporary Gallery, Milan (group exhibition); 1:1, Galeria Ivan, Bucharest (duo exhibition with Gavril Pop); Costume and Collapse, Pickle Bar Slavs and Tatars, Berlin (group exhibition); My Rhino is Not A Myth, ArtEncounters Biennial, Timișoara. She was included in the New Talent 2025 edition of Art in America magazine.

Gavril Pop (b. 1998, Timișoara) studied Painting and Art History at the West University of Timișoara. Gavril Pop is active on the art scene in Timișoara, working as a project author, curator, cultural mediator, archivist, and writer of critical texts for publications. He frequently collaborates with independent art spaces, foundations, and associations, contributing to exhibitions and cultural mediation programs. Recent exhibitions he has participated in include: 2025 – Art Encounters Biennial (group exhibition); 2025 – Convulsie SRL: Picături pe Plita Încinsă, TRIUMF AMIRIA. Museum of Queer Culture, Bucharest (group exhibition); 2025 – Appearances from Common Ground, INDECIS, Timișoara; 2024 – Variables as Absence of Uniformity, Wetterling Gallery, Stockholm (group exhibition);  Hortus Conclusus, French Institute, Timișoara (group exhibition); 2023 – The Twist. Five Provincial Stories from an Empire, Kunsthalle Bega, Timișoara; 1:1, Ivan Gallery, Bucharest (duo exhibition with Giulia Crețulescu); 2022 – If a Story is Present, Art Encounters Foundation, Timișoara (group exhibition).

The exhibition can be visited until October 24, 2025, Monday through Friday, between 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., at the art space of the Rumänisches Kulturinstitut Berlin, Reinhardtstr. 14, 10117 Berlin-Mitte.

On Saturday, September 13, there will be an Artist Talk with the participation of artists Giulia Crețulescu and Gavril Pop. The discussion will be moderated by Marian Ivan.