Born in 1903, Ion Irimescu is remembered as one of Romania's best sculptors and a very influential example of contemporary art, being very much appreciated and admired by his peers, art collectors and the general public. A nephew of Jules Cazaban, director and paywright, Irimescu began his art studies in 1924 at the Fine Arts School in Bucharest. Little is known that the future great sculptor waas just a step away from losing his hands, after playing in his childhood years with a grenade, left behind from WW 1. Yet, somehow, against all odds, he was able to recover, despite the fact that the grenade exploded near him.
He finished his studies in 1928, and among his teachers were Oscar Han and Dimitrie Paciurea, two major names in the field of Romanian sculpture, who helped him create his own style. After making his debut at the Official Salon of Painting and Sculpture in Bucharest - and he would exhibit here for several years to come - he had the chance of being granted a scholarship for the Romanian School at the Fontenay aux Roses in France. The French experience, as in so many other cases, proved to be decissive in his career. He exhibited in Paris, then enrolled at the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere, and over the next few years he had several successful shows in Paris.
Returning to Romania in 1933, he kept on working and perfecting his style, and starting with 1937 he exhibited regularly at the Tinerimea Romana shows, being highly appreciated by art critics and collectors, becoming a member of the prestigious society by 1938.
In 1940 - 1950, despite the dramatic events and changes in Romanian history - the WW 2 and the change of the political regime - Ion Irimescu had the chance of being a professor of sculpture, for the whole decade, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Iasi. He was very respected and liked by his students, although he was a very strict and demanding teacher, who wanted to form a new generation of artists. Since 1950 he taught at the Ion Andreescu Institute of Fine and Decorative Art in Cluj-Napoca.
The reminder of his career will be marked by several highlights. In 1956 he exhibited at the Venice Biannual Exhibition, where he presented no less than 15 works, in 1961 he had an impressive show at the Musee Rodin in Paris. In 1964 he moved to Bucharest, where he continued teaching, this time at the Nicolae Grigorescu Institute of Plastic Arts, and in 1978 - 1989 he was the president of the UAP.
His wide range of subjects, themes and his personal, easily recognisable style made his work very popular and in high demand world wide, as Ion Irimescu had several exhibitions abroad, in Paris, Belgrade, Moscow, Budapest, Instanbul, Rome, Oslo, Tokyo, just to name a few. He died in 2003.
Among his most interesting projects was the founding of a museum in Falticeni, in 1975, beginning with a large and valuable donation made by the artist, and art museum which is still very popular. Here visitors can admire the largest collection of Irimescu's works, around 1000 drawings and over 300 sculptors, ranging from portraits to compositions, works in bronze, terracotta, marble and many, many others. Here you can also see another major donation, most of the sculptor's personal library, over 1500 volumes, some of these really rare and interesting.
