ARTIST PROFILE

by ITI

  • Romania (b. 1987 in Bucharest)
  • Currently in Bucharest, Romania.
  • Make the world your playground

CONTACT & LINKS

ARTIST INFO

ARTIST STATEMENT

The world as playground

I see life as a big universal game, with various levels and few retry opportunities. Unfortunately, rules are made to be broken and only the top players keep up with the game and raise their chances of winning by switching everything in their own advantage - politically, economically, always with the high stakes behind the scenes, in an encrypted reality, away from the public access.

War, for instance, turns adults into military officials, with all sort of strategic actions and maps available for them to play with their great tanks and deadly rifles which beyond the battle/play-ground, leave behind real victims.

The world is made of such small and big games - a mix of monopoly, poker, gambling, sexual games, hide and seek, sometimes in order to survive. Everyone plays a game, whether he/she decides to join or not.

But what if we began playing by our own rules in our games, not theirs?
In 2012, I decided to start my own game, draw my own stickers like a child enjoying a new set of colored crayons to further explore new techniques - painting, collage and more. My works reflect the impact of man made games (media/ economy/ education/ religion/ politics) on collective and individual consciousness. I approach these issues with irony or through the filter of love as the solution to drive change and reveal the corrupted game.

I do not play alone, I create each work as a way to interact with people who like to play for something better and more meaningful, and together we can focus on the message, not on the illusion fueled by the big games. So join me in this adventure to make the world our playground.

ITI is my username in the artistic game I chose, the phonetic Romanian interpretation of Spielberg's famous E.T. character.


PRESS

  • Romanian artist ITI accepted our invitation to share his story in his first time interview. Find out exclusive insights about his artistic approach, recent projects and latest exhibitions.

    It has been more than one year since you’ve been active as an artist. How did it all begin?

    Well, it was an unexpected start for me that opened many new possibilities. So, you can say I never planned to be an artist – I am a self-taught new comer in the field.

    It may seem a little ironic, but a few years ago, while I was wandering on the streets of Bucharest or when attending different urban events, I used to collect stickers. Then, one day, my mother, who is a teacher, had a project at school and bought sticker paper. That was the first time I decided to try, I took a pen and let my imagination free. After that, I received some crayons as present, and at that time I felt like a child, a free spirit, stuck in a world of adults who forgot what is really important in life. I decided to remind them. When I finished my first 150 stickers, I selected a few and started sticking them on the streets.

    http://thereart.ro/iti-interview/