Red reveals itself with relative ease, in glasses and on canvases alike. True Red, Crimson, Burgundy, Wine, Merlot, Scarlet – names that evoke different intensities of the same color, from the pure expression of red to velvety depths, from brilliance to shadow. Ultramarine blue opens up another, infinite horizon, while Pure Gold leaf captures the light between sunrise and sunset. Between these colors, shades, tones and luminous reflections unfolds a story of perception and of the ways in which the senses meet, challenge and complement one another.
On 15 February 2024, as part of the 8th edition of the national Bag-in-Box wine competition, organized by AZOC-Star – Smurfit Kappa, La Mama – Clubul Țăranului Restaurant became the setting for an encounter between the world of wine and that of contemporary Romanian abstract art with Pure Gold leaf. Throughout the entire day, white, rosé and red wines were tasted and evaluated in blind tasting sessions. During the first part of the event, six panels composed of international wine experts from Romania assessed the samples without knowing their identity. In the second part of the day, I had the pleasure of taking part in this sensory journey of discovery myself, as a taster.
Alongside the competition, a pop-up exhibition of abstract paintings with Pure Gold leaf, with works signed by the two of us, Cristina and Magda Staicut, became a meeting point for ideas, impressions and creative conversations. Red and ultramarine blue created visual contrasts and tensions, while Pure Gold leaf introduced the captured light of a sunlit day as a living, ever-changing presence, dependent on the angle from which it is viewed.
Wine and painting thus shared more than a simple juxtaposition of colors. Blind tasting invited participants to look beyond the label, guided by attention and sensitivity. Abstract painting offered a similar experience: freed from literal representation, color remained open to interpretation, carrying different meanings for every viewer.
Between Crimson and Merlot, between the depth of Ultramarine blue and the reflections of Pure Gold leaf, a dialogue emerged about shades – visible and invisible – and the ways in which they shape our perception. What one person experiences as intensity may evoke nostalgia in another; what begins as a visual impression may become a memory, an association or an unexpected conversation.
The exhibition Tasting Color remains the story of memorable encounters in which the senses moved beyond their own boundaries, and color became a shared language between art, wine and people. An invitation to look more closely, to feel more deeply and to discover that, sometimes, the most beautiful shades need no words to be recognized.
Selected artworks from the exhibition
Magda StaicutAbundance, 202339.2 x 39.2 x 3.2 cm
Magda StaicutInterconnection, 202333 x 27 x 3.2 cm
Private CollectionCristina StaicutPromises, 202340 x 40 x 3.2 cm
Magda StaicutCatalina, 202330 x 30 x 3.2 cm
Cristina StaicutThin Ground, 202339.2 x 39.2 x 3.2 cm
Staicut Private CollectionMagda StaicutColumnae Mundi, 202334 x 34 x 3.2 cm
