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”.
Thus, Angelica Maria and Matilda Ardeleanu have created the most important international visual art exhibition of early 2025, questioning the concepts of community, loneliness, anxiety, and what the apocalypse means for each of us.
The Photography Resource Center, through the Amfiteatru Foundation, offers a unique experience in the Romanian cultural environment. This initiative creates a bridge between international cultures, connecting the alarming elements manifested through fear and isolation, generated by the contemporary socio-political environment.
The exhibition “DOOM MOOD” does not rely on sensationalism, but on the everyday elements and behaviors that go unnoticed but define a subtle reality. It offers a mute experience, acting as a relevant witness that does not provide answers but helps bring to consciousness the elements most of us prefer not to see.
About the Artists
Giulia Mangione
(b. 1987, Italy)
An Italian visual artist based in Oslo, Norway, working with photography, film, and writing. With studies in Comparative Literature at Goldsmiths University of London, Fine Arts at the Academy of Art in Bergen, and Advanced Visual Storytelling at the Danish School of Media and Journalism, she published her first book, “Halfway Mountain”, in 2018 at The Photographers’ Gallery in London. The book was selected for the Prix du Livre* at Les Rencontres d’Arles and nominated for the MACK First Book Award.
Her works have been exhibited at:
– Triennale Milano (IT)
– International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York
– Musée de l’Élysée in Lausanne (CH)
– Foto-forum in Bolzano (IT)
– Fotogalleriet in Oslo (NO)
– Bergen Kunsthall in Bergen (NO)
She was featured in the sixth edition of the Norwegian Journal of Photography and selected for the Futures program. In 2023, she received the Luigi Ghirri Award.
Toma Hurduc
(b. 2001, Romania)
A documentary photographer currently based in Bucharest, Romania. His focus initially revolved around representing local underground communities and movements, with which he feels a strong connection. His narratives are often built on personal experience and the relationship with the subject, combining factual truth with the imaginary to question human perception of reality, horror, anxiety, ephemerality, and memory.
With an academic background in Cinematography, Toma is deeply interested in how light shapes images, frequently working with black-and-white 35mm film to depict the surrealism of the everyday.
His work has been exhibited both in Romania and internationally, and he has participated in mentorship programs, most recently with Annie Leibovitz and the IKEA Foundation.
About the Partners
Amfiteatru Foundation
Based in Bucharest, in collaboration with Nitja Center for Contemporary Art in Lillestrøm (Norway), presents the exhibition “DOOM MOOD”, developed within an educational program dedicated to young talents. Angelica Maria and Matilda Ardeleanu are debuting in visual arts through curating the works of Giulia Mangione and Toma Hurduc.
The project “Next Generation of Artists” provides an international platform for exposure for artists and curators, with the exhibition also set to be hosted at Nitja Center for Contemporary Art in Lillestrøm.
Nitja Center for Contemporary Art
Located in Lillestrøm, Norway, the center promotes contemporary art through exhibitions, educational programs, and projects dedicated to young talents, offering a creative and educational space for contemporary artists.
This project is financed with the support of EEA and Norwegian Grants – National Bilateral Fund under the RO-CULTURA Program.