The documentary art exhibition “Hemp – Back to the Future” will be open at the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant between June 18 and July 12. The cultural project, initiated by the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association, is dedicated to rediscovering hemp as a sustainable resource positioned at the crossroads of heritage, contemporary design, and applied research.

The opening event will take place on Wednesday at 5:00 PM in the Tancred Bănăţeanu Hall of the museum. Admission is free to the public, with prior registration required via email at comunicare@creart.ro.

The exhibition explores the past, present, and future of hemp and will also be showcased in September–October at Romania’s Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka.

Curated by architect Teodor Frolu, the exhibition brings together the contributions of renowned professionals in textiles and visual arts, including Dr. Florica Zaharia – emeritus conservator of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and director of the Textile Museum in Băiţa, Oláh Gyárfás – visual artist and designer for the Patzaikin brand, as well as multidisciplinary artists Dan Vezentan and Dilmana Yordanova.

Structured in two main sections, the exhibition features both contemporary artistic installations and conceptual objects – such as the oversized hemp textile work by Oláh Gyárfás, or “Spindle with Jingle Bells” by Mircea Cantor – as well as a collection of heritage items, including traditional costumes, processing tools, fabric samples, and comparative materials from Romania and Japan, selected from the Textile Museum’s archive.

The exhibition also includes an audiovisual component focused on reinterpreting hemp in contemporary design. The Patzaikin brand presents a selection from its fully hemp-based collection created for Romania’s participation in the Tokyo Olympic Games, including the central installation – the Patzaikin textile totem. All exhibits will be documented through multimedia formats and integrated into the official presentation of the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association at the Romania Pavilion for Expo Osaka 2025.

The exhibition at the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant thus serves as a key phase of research, experimentation, and engagement with the Romanian public prior to its international debut this autumn in Osaka. The project highlights Romania’s commitment to sustainability and innovation through the revalorization of a traditional material in a global context.

The cultural project, initiated by the Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 Association, is organized by CREART – the Center for Creation, Art and Tradition of the Municipality of Bucharest. Project partners include the PATZAIKIN brand, the CANEPARO cluster, and the Textile Museum – International Center for Textile Research. The event is supported by the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant and ICOM – the International Council of Museums. Its international presentation at Romania’s Pavilion in Osaka will be carried out in collaboration with the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Written by Aura Marinescu | 17 iunie 2025, 09:36