Doina Cornea Foundation

Muzeul de Artă, Cluj-Napoca

Romania

December 15 2023 - January 7 2024

press release

sound composition : Gabriela Hébert

mastering : Zacharie Perreault-Samson

exhibit curated by Ileana Cornea

sound composition - a room where you were listened

Doina Cornea was a prominent figure in Romania known for her courageous opposition to the repressive communist regime led by Nicolae Ceaușescu. Born on May 30, 1929, Cornea was a professor of French literature in Cluj-Napoca. Doina Cornea's bravery and resilience made her a symbol of resistance in Romania. She faced harassment, surveillance, and intimidation from the secret police but continued to speak out against the regime. Following the overthrow of Ceaușescu in the 1989 revolution, Cornea's contributions to the fight for freedom and human rights were widely recognized.

This exhibit was founded by the Doina Cornea Foundation as a tribute to her dedication in the oppressed time.

Within the exhibit, a sound composition takes place in a designated room, offering an auditory journey that transports the audience back to an era where privacy was a luxury. The composition is meticulously crafted to simulate the experience of clandestinely eavesdropping on the conversations within Doina Cornea's home. Employing techniques such as opening the shower to muffle conversations and writing on a piece of paper, the piece thoughtfully communicates the covert methods used during that time. Derived from a discovered tape featuring Doina, her mother, and cousin Virgil, the composition provides a profound exploration that aims to evoke the atmosphere of a period marked by surveillance and the struggle for freedom of speech, revealing the intimate moments of lives stripped of privacy.