Gheorghe Virtosu - The Great Innovator of Abstract and Thematic Paintings

It is thought that people used watercolors to draw images on the walls of caves in Paleolithic times. The ancient Egyptians created manuscript illustrations with natural pigments dissolved in water. True watercolor artists, however, appeared much later - during the Renaissance in Europe. Now we can enjoy the spectacular masterpieces of many famous artists created from the 16th century to present times.

Gheorghe Virtosu is one of the famous artists in recent era. Born in Romania in 1968, Gheorghe Virtosu is of the generation that came of age as the calcified Eastern Bloc was slouching towards its final collapse in 1989.

With unimaginable options now open to the artist, Virtosu left the Republic of Moldova after his compulsory military service and three-year stint in the state security services was complete. The artist travelled all over the world, soaking up its rich and varied textures, and eventually settled in London and became a British citizen.

Alternating between living in freedom and suffering in confinement has been a fact of Virtosu’s life, both as a young man and in adulthood. This theme, the struggle to find meaning and beauty amidst the harsh reality of life is a powerful narrative force in his painting.

While living through a period of incarceration during which Virtosu struggled with the loneliness that is inherent when one is separated from the outside world he took up writing as a form of self-therapy. He has several art works that attracts people who have the true love for colors. He is considered as one of the famous modern day artists in the world.

Nevertheless, Gheorghe Virtosu also took up the painter’s brush in earnest. The man is a self-taught artist and began to create abstract, thematic paintings that feature bold colors in pursuit of a mystical ascension above the ugliness of the world. With titles that reference the “real world” such as Iranian Spirit, Blairism, and Gaddafi Sentence the paintings approach varied themes from the multicultural world share.