Ediorials - Interview with Raluca Risco

Tell in a few words about the beginnings of your artistic career. Which teachers have supported you?
I started to study painting at the highschool "Ioan Sima" in Zalau, then I followed the Faculty of Art and Design in Timisoara and a master degree in the school of Cluj, the Faculty of Art And Design, Cluj-Napoca. In Timisoara I found the whorkshop 205 that I felt it as my place, my home with colleagues under the guidance of lecturer Ph.D. Liliana Popa, and the city of Cluj offered me a workshop in Central Park where painting is at home, under the guidance of professor doctor Ioan Sbarciu.

Why painting and nothing else?
Why painting and nothing else? Good question! Painting relieves you, any topic, theme you choose, make you accept and revolt at the same time without making to much fuss.

What style do you think suits you best? Is there an artist or artistic movement that influenced you in your art? I can not identify with a paricular style, I`m in a constant search and I try to take shape. I can not get out of my head the works of Frida Kahlo, they are those that gives me a sense of horror, disgust, revulsion and all in a good way.

Which is your favourite theme? What inspires you the most?
In the past three years I have used as a generic for my works an accumulation of medical experiences that have become a visual material for those less knowledgeable of these experiences. I try to be honest and not get into topics, themes, that don`t have to do with what i feel, live. I prefer paint a trivial landscape, but which will please me spiritually towards the end.

Are you using several techniques or are you loyal to one single?
Did you happen to come back on a painting or go all the way with a theme set properly?
Most of the time I don`t have a finale image on a painting. I believe that randomness or accidents are the ones that could offer something visually spectacular than if you try to control it. The paiting alla first it`s one of the techiniques that I often use because when I do it gives me a sense of release, discharge without explaing myself, my brushing, color or composition. It`s hard to remain to a predetermined theme because I revolt often over the final result.
What do you think about young Romanian art and artists? Do you think you can live from art these days?
I`m very glad when I see my colleagues, friends that succeed to emerge from the workshop with thier projects and they are successful. For me is very important to prove myself that, yes, I can live from art.

What`s your opinion about the fact that some of the painters prefer to approach "fashionable" themes and they don`t go on their own way?
Most of us, I think, we are fooled by the immediate succes of short duration. I am not looking for the immediate success, but I try to offer myself time to get to the deserved success.
The expression" fashionable" frequently bothers me and that`s way I choose to move back home, to my parents because I don`t want to be influenced by such current.

Tell us about your most important exhibition.Which are your plans for the future? I enjoyed the group exhibition, together with my colleagues, during the license and the master degree where the atmosphere during the opening makes you confident and proud that you are part of a project, a group of people with whom you live such experiences. Future plans?
I intend to come to Bucharest as soon as possible to live the emotions of a personal exhibition.