The paintings in the Romanian and Moldovan capitals allude to political transformation which started in Poland 25 years ago, after the 4 June 1989 parliamentary elections.
On 6 September 2014, a work entitled “The Butterflies of Freedom” was unveiled in Chisinau. It depicts a motley cloud of butterflies whose colours evoke the flags of Eastern European countries. The butterflies leave a dark-red background behind and fly up towards the blue sky – a symbol of freedom.
A mural unveiled in Bucharest on 13 September 2014 shows cranes symbolizing the Gdansk shipyard, which was the birthplace of ”Solidarity,” the biggest social movement in the history of Poland, which also triggered political transformation in Central Europe. The composition culminates in cranes shown against the background of the Romanian flag. “What the Poles started in 1980, the Romanians completed in winter 1989,” underlined Rafał Roskowiński, the mural’s author, speaking at its presentation.
Two years ago, the Polish Institute in Bucharest approached the authorities of both cities with a project to revitalize high-rise residential estates and promote art in public space. The cooperation brought about three murals on high-rises in Chisinau’s Botanica and Bucharest’s Militari estates. Two additional murals were made this year by artists of the Gdansk School of Mural: Rafał Roskowiński, Professor Jacek Zdybel, Magdalena Pela, Katarzyna Marcinkowska, and Wojciech Woźniak.
The project was made possible thanks to the involvement of Polish, Moldovan and Romanian institutions: the City Hall in Chisinau, Sector 6 Mayoralty in Bucharest, the Gdansk School of Mural, the City Culture Institute in Gdansk, and the Adam Mickiewicz Institute.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs RP Press Office, the Polish Institute in Bucharest
Photo © Dan Draghicescu