The Column 1992

Horia Bernea made this watercolor, The Column, and right away you can see he's thinking through color. Not just what colors to use, but how the watercolor moves, bleeds, and blends. It's all about process, not freezing a single moment. Look at the column itself, how it's not just white but alive with grays and shadows, like it's breathing. Then there's that wallpaper behind it – a riot of floral abstraction. Bernea lets the paint drip, smudge, and do its own thing. It feels spontaneous, like he's chasing a feeling more than a perfect image. I’m reminded of Giorgio Morandi. Both share that interest in the everyday but turning it into something meditative. But unlike Morandi, Bernea seems less concerned with stillness and more with capturing a fleeting moment. It's like he's saying, "Art is not about perfection, it's about the conversation, the dialogue between artist and material."