The finissage of the Doom Mood exhibition took place on February 26 at the Center of Photograhy Resources- Centrul de Resurse în Fotografie (CdRF), in a setting of reflection on contemporary alienation.
Several creative and cultural publications, including Curatorialist, IQads, and Scena9, have covered DOOM MOOD, an exhibition that delves into the profound and inevitable alienation of individuals from their daily lives and surroundings. Curators Angelica Maria and Matilda Ardeleanu propose, through this project, a reflection on social presence and collective participation in an imminent collapse—whether through the slow accumulation of disasters or the imperceptible erosion of reality.
After Bucharest, the Doom Mood exhibition also had its opening in Lillestrøm, Norway. The Amfiteatru Foundation team was represented by Angelica Maria, Matilda Ardeleanu, Toma Hurduc, and Sorin Florea. They all took part in setting up the exhibition and attending the event during a four-day visit on February 12th to 15th, 2025.
On the first day, the team met with the representatives from Nitja, then visited the exhibition space to inspect the artworks and plan their installation. Lighting adjustments were made, the sound background was tested, and both teams finalized the exhibition layout. The work lists and exhibition map were also prepared. In the afternoon, the team visited the camera obscura and the CYAN lab and met with Stig Weston.
The exhibition “DOOM MOOD”, curated by Matilda Ardeleanu and Angelica Maria, along with artists Toma Hurduc and Giulia Mangione, explores the existential fears generated by the global socio-political context and how these anxieties shape individual identities and community connections. The vernissage will take place on February 1, 2025, at the CdRF Gallery, starting at 18:00, in the presence of the artists.
“DOOM MOOD” addresses the profound and forced alienation of individuals from their surroundings and their daily experience. Angelica and Matilda, through the curatorial concept, question social presence and participation in an imminent collapse of capitalist society, whether it is the slow accumulation of disasters or the unnoticed erosion of reality.
The works of Giulia Mangione (NO/IT) are part of her project “The Fall”, in which she captures the strange tension felt by humanity in anticipation of a catastrophic event. She constructs a shared reality of waiting, a collective paranoia about the imminence of the end.
Toma Hurduc’s (RO) project, “Two Suns”, paints a picture of people lost in the chaos of their environment, where the apocalypse sneaks in unnoticed, deepening the theme of “solitude in the crowd”.
Part of the Bilateral Initiatives Call – “Bilateral Cooperation for the Development of Contemporary Art”
We have launched a Romanian-Norwegian bilateral program aimed at fostering education and visibility for emerging artists. The project aims to support the career development of emerging artists by providing them with an international platform to increase their visibility.
The program includes mentorship in curatorial practices, a visual art exhibition with openings in both Bucharest and Lillestrøm, Norway, and an exhibition catalog documenting the entire initiative.
Two young artists will take on the role of curators, organizing an exhibition featuring works by two emerging photographers—one from Romania and one from Norway. They will be guided by experienced professionals from the cultural sector, including members of the Amfiteatru Foundation and Nitja Center teams.