Alexandru Salceanu is a Romanian-American interdisciplinary artist. Born in Communist Romania and emigrating in 1992, his work concentrates on reconciling his cultural identity with his assimilation into American life. This life altering move has driven him to explore many layered historical and aesthetic references. How does one understand the dissonance of political and economic theory compared to the intimacy of lived experience? This is where his exploration and his creative focus lives: Alexandru stitches historical facts and personal accounts together by using a variety of media—photography, video, projection mapping, painting, social practice, and mixed media. Through his work, he utilizes art’s transformative power to humanize issues, challenge perspectives and encourage a more personal encounter.
Alexandru Salceanu’s work was shown in solo and group exhibits at the de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA; Root Division, San Francisco, CA; Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA; Mills College Art Museum, Oakland, CA; SOMArts Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA; University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA; Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA; Kaleid Gallery, San Jose, CA; Brea Art Gallery, Brea, CA; University of San Diego, San Diego, CA; Art Academy of San Diego, San Diego, CA; Millepiani, Rome, Italy; CICA Museum, Gimpo, South Korea; The Lord Mayor's Pavilion, Cork, Ireland; Galleri Heike Arndt, Berlin, Germany; among others.
He was awarded the SFAC Artist Grant, CCI Quick Grant, and Cadogan Scholarship.
He received his B.A. from the University of San Diego in San Diego, California and his MFA from Mills College in Oakland, California.
Email: alexandrusalceanustudio@gmail.com
Alternate website: www.witnesscollaborative.org
CV
EDUCATION
MILLS COLLEGE | OAKLAND, CA
August 2019 - May 2021
M.F.A. Visual Arts, Cadogan Scholarship recipient
UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO | SAN DIEGO, CA
August 2000 - May 2004
B.A. Visual Arts
AWARDS
2024 San Francisco Artist Grant. San Francisco
Arts Commission. San Francisco, CA
2022 Center for Cultural Innovation Quick Grant. Center for Cultural Innovation. San Francisco, CA
2020 Cadogan Scholarship. San Francisco Foundation. San Francisco, CA
RESIDENCIES
2023 Casa de Gratie Gavril Cacina Artist Residency. Artfest. Vatra Dornei, Romania
2022 The Box Shop Artist Residency. The Box Shop. San Francisco, CA
2022 ArtSpan Journal Building Artist Residency. Journal Building. San Francisco, CA
2021 Parent Artist Residency Award. Kala Art Institute. Berkeley, CA
SELECTED EXHIBITS
2024 In Between. International Art Museum of America, San Francisco, CA
2024 Explore Your Roots. SSF Cultural Arts Commission Gallery, South San Francisco, CA
2024 Scout. Galleri Heike Arndt, Kettinge, Denmark
2024 Experimental Film. Gisela, Berlin, Germany
2024 Earthseed, Undergrowth, and Afterlife. SEED Gallery, Tides Converge, San Francisco, CA
2024 AlieNation. Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA
2024 Fresh Legs. Galleri Heike Arndt DK, Berlin, Germany
2024 63rd Annual Potrero Hill Artists' Exhibition. Potrero Branch Library, San Francisco, CA
2024 Integrations Pt. 3. China Brotsky Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2024 Integrations Pt. 2. Four Chicken Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2024 Creativity of Slowness. Gisela, Berlin, Germany
2024 Contemporary Perspectives from San Francisco. The Lord Mayor's Pavilion, Cork, Ireland
2024 Season 9. Video Sound Archive, Online Exhibition
2023 The de Young Open. de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA
2023 ME in a(ME)rica. Root Division, San Francisco, CA
2023 Voices. CICA Museum, Gimpo, South Korea
2023 Pyramid Scheme. Bass and Reiner, San Francisco, CA
2023 Integrations Pt. 1. Dutch Boy Paint Warehouse Lofts, Oakland, CA
2023 Tides Converge Exhibition. China Brotsky Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2023 Cornucopia. Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA
2023 Conceptual Photography. ArtDoc Photography Magazine, Online Exhibition
2023 More is More. Hot House Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2023 Migrations and Shifting Borders. Millepiani, Rome, Italy
2022 Image and Identity. ArtDoc Photography Magazine, Online Exhibition
2022 Artist Annual Exhibition. Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA
2021 Crystal Ball: 2021 Mills College MFA Exhibition. Mills College Art Museum, Oakland, CA
2020 The Annual Murphy and Cadogan Contemporary Art Awards Exhibition. SOMArts Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA
2012 The Citadel Artists. The Citadel, San Jose, CA
2011 7th Annual Creative Justice Art Show. University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
2011 The Citadel Artists. The Citadel, San Jose, CA
2009 Home Grown. Kaleid Gallery, San Jose, CA
2007 La Dolce Vita. Brea Gallery, Brea, CA
2004 Reflections. University of San Diego, CA
2003 Printmaking Techniques. Art Academy of San Diego, San Diego, CA
PUBLICATIONS
2024 Fresh Legs, Artist Catalogue, Galleri Heike Arndt DK, Berlin, Germany
2023 Voices, Artist Catalog, CICA Museum, Gimpo, South Korea
2022 Loss of a Mother, ARTDOC Photography Magazine
2020 Murphy and Cadogan Contemporary Award, in Issue magazine, SOMArts Cultural Center
2020 The Annual Murphy & Cadogan Contemporary Art Awards 2020, Artist Catalog, San Francisco
2020 Artist Feature, SOMArts Cultural Center, Oct.1, 2020
SELECTED COLLECTIVE WORK
2022-present Founder, Romanian Artist Collective SF, San Francisco, CA
2022-present Founder, Witness Collaborative, San Francisco, CA
CURATOR/EXHIBITION MANAGEMENT
2024 Earth Story Ancestors. The Cultural Conservancy, San Francisco, CA
2024 In Between. International Art Museum of America, San Francisco, CA
2024 Kay Key YA. The Cultural Conservancy, San Francisco, CA
2024 Integrations Pt. 3. China Brotsky Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2024 Seeds of Hope. The Cultural Conservancy, San Francisco, CA
2024 Integrations Pt. 2. Four Chicken Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2023 Integrations Pt. 1. Dutch Boy Paint Warehouse Lofts, Oakland, CA
2023 The Children’s Series. The Cultural Conservancy, San Francisco, CA
2019 IllumiNative. Slidespace 123. Oakland, CA (curatorial practice course)
2019 2019 Senior Preview Exhibition. Slidespace 123. Oakland, CA (curatorial practice course)
2019 The Heart of Heartsong. Slidespace 123. Oakland, CA (curatorial practice course)
2008 The Art of Thought. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA co-curated with Kim Abeles
2008 B Movie Madness. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA
2008 The Media. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA
2008 Made in California. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA
2007 6 Degrees of Separation. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA
2007 Made in California. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA
2007 Watercolor West. Brea Gallery. Brea, CA