How does travel get along with the stability of an artistic practice?
Being a digital nomad may seem like a different lifestyle for artists whose deep tie to their studio is the essence of art making itself. Similarly, my studio in Brasov has been my anchor for over 8 years. It has been a location, but more than that, it has provided inspiration for both me and my students who have studied drawing and painting techniques there. Many of you, including friends and collectors, have visited my studio, fostered meaningful conversations and witnessed creative ideas emerging from it with the power and confidence of a supernova. However, as the wheel of life has been spinning, the decision has been made to close this physical space in the summer of 2024. Nevertheless, the studio did not die together with the closing of the physical space. It had only reached a point of transferring to a new, online concept.
Change is NOT bad!
I have not had the opportunity to elaborate extensively on this transition, as it has been a demanding and emotionally taxing process that necessitated substantial rest and reflection. After spending a year as a Fulbright grantee in the United States, I now firmly believe that it is time to move forward into this new phase and to share the story of these new beginnings within my studio’s journey.
I am happy to carry the physical legacy of my Brasov studio, through photographs, in my book (only available in Romanian for now) – link here
So, what NOW?
While I write equally as much as I draw, my studio means more field work, more archive study, more in depth research. Therefore, I cannot tell where I am based, other than saying where my current project is holding me for a while. With all this excitement, my studio is a portable concept. Therefore, I encourage you to reach out:
- Art prints, herbal products, and stationery: All of these items are available and can be found listed on my website or at the retail shops I collaborate with. If you represent a shop and wish to inquire about resale opportunities, please contact me via email at contact@irinaneacsu.com
- Original artworks: Rare find. Contact me at contact@irinaneacsu.com for availability
- Inquiries about commissions: yes, I am open to these. Again, email is the best. Tell me what you like from something maybe you’ve seen on my website or Instagram, let me know size, occasion, ideas, anything you have in mind, and I’ll send an offer back, via email, at contact@irinaneacsu.com
- Inquiries about monograph production: yes, this is NEW. We might want to sit and talk, to make sure you will have the best monograph for your special garden, place, or plant. So, let’s set up a meeting, via contact@irinaneacsu.com
- Classes: still on! While botanical art workshops are not happening as often as before, I am working on prerecorded online classes, and ready to respond to invitations to teach in various venues, if time allows. However, one constant activity, now in hybrid format, is drawing lessons with portfolio and admission preparation for students who want to apply for architecture, design and art universities. Drop a line at contact@irinaneacsu.com to see the options.
The process begins with an email. Despite its more structured, and apparently less personal approach, I still offer a variety of products and services. I gently request that you accept online platforms as a convenient meeting space and consider my mobility as an opportunity for cultural and emotional enrichment, which I will be pleased to share with you.
Not sure why to drop an email?
Then stay in touch through my newsletter, find out what’s new, and engage with whatever you resonate most.
Stability and mobility in my artistic practice
While all the above are mostly practicalities of the unfolding of my current studio concept, well, I did open the floor for answering this question: can stability go hand in hand with mobility in an artist practice?
In this phase of my practice, I’m navigating a space BETWEEN stability and mobility—two forces often seen as opposites yet deeply intertwined in my current rhythm. This is between comfort and excitement, between established and experimental. It is something that airs the soil for new growth. Without a fixed studio, I’ve traded the permanence of a meeting point for the depth of movement: traveling to sites that matter, following research threads into forests, archives, and conversations across geographies. This mobility allows for richer, slower engagement with place and subject, even as I miss the ease of welcoming friends and clients into a shared physical space. Stability now comes not from location, but from intention—from the continuity of my work, the relationships I cultivate, and the deeper grounding that comes from pursuing meaning over convenience. I remain grateful for you, who trust this change, and who continue supporting my work.
