The Role of the Romanian Plastic Artists Union (UAP) in Producing Art for the Socialist State

• In Event: Creating for the State During Socialism: The Role of Artists' Unions

Abstract

The Romanian Plastic Artists Union (Uniunea Artiștilor Plastici, UAP) was established in 1950 to consolidate the state model of production of art, after the foundation in 1949 of the Plastic Fund (Fondul Plastic, FP). This presentation will analyze the role played by the UAP, the FP and the Plastic Fund Production Factory (Combinatul Fondului Plastic, CFP, 1952) in producing a new state art during the socialist regime in Romania (1948-1989). The analysis will address the institutional structure of the Union and of the two other subordinate institutions, the FP and the CPF, as well as its relations with the Ministry of Culture, and with the other ministries. Additionally, we will look at the ideological dynamics of the Union during the four decades of the communist regime, and consider the role played by artistic amateurs in producing an art for the state. While the Union was the most important organization to standardize the creation of plastic artists, the FP and the CFP played a specific role in the distribution of benefits for the members of the Union and for the production of their artworks.

Author

• Caterina Preda, U of Bucharest (Romania)