Blue Eyes Don’t Lie is the inaugural exhibition of Jecza and Olaru Gallery in Bucharest. Founded by art gallerist, Andrei Jecza and designer, Andra Olaru - the aim of this dynamic collaboration is to present some of the most exciting, pioneering and respected figures from their two creative fields, to the Bucharest audience.
The intriguing title of this exhibition almost became the name of the gallery, before the duo decided it should be eponymous. The phrase though, persisted and became the inspiration for a show that could also be the title of a novel or film. The list of artists participating in this landmark event is impressive, combining celebrated historic practitioners with leading contemporary figures from multi disciplinary practices: Teodora Axente, Corneliu Baba, Marius Bercea, Claire Fahys, David Farcaș, Oana Farcaș, Robert Fekete, Marius Ghita, Șerban Ionesco, Adéla Janskà, Péter Jecza, Genti Korini, Justin Mortimer, Radu Oreian, Marcel Rusu, Sergiu Toma, Nicolae Tonitza and Ion Țuculescu.
Unsurprisingly (considering the exhibition includes several figurative painters), there are a number of compelling portraits of blue-eyed protagonists featured in the show. These though are balanced by works which have used the Blue Eyes Don’t Lie title as inspiration for engendering atmosphere: intrigue, mystery or other-worldly forms and landscapes that would not be out of place in historic dramas, science fiction or alternate universes, created by the likes of writers Philip K. Dick and Isaac Asimov.
Historically, mythologies around ‘blue eyes’ have abounded. During the Medieval Period, thanks to the cultural friction driven by the Crusades, blue eyes which were a rarity in the Middle East, came to be feared and even associated with the curse of the ‘evil eye’. Muslim writers of the period sometimes characterised blue or green eyes as unattractive or even deviant (most probably because of the arrival of the Western warrior crusader knights). Protective amulets known as the ‘blue eye’ or ‘nazar’ were worn to ward off the evil eye, its blue colour chosen because it mimicked the rare, light-blue colour of eyes that were believed to be able to cast the curse.
With this in mind, perhaps Blue Eyes Don’t Lie could be viewed as a plea not to demonise the minority because of inherent suspicion? Or maybe it is a positive statement because blue eyes have also been associated with angelic beauty: the Archangel Michael for example, is often depicted as having blue/grey eyes and across various spiritual colour systems, blue light consistently signifies protection, faith and strength. Whatever the case, blue eyes have always intrigued because they are arresting and relatively unusual. The particle physicist, Professor Brian Cox, has famously discussed the evolutionary origin of blue eyes, noting that every person with blue eyes shares a single common ancestor who lived between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago. Before this genetic mutation occurred, every human being on Earth had brown eyes. Cox uses this as a specific example of how a tiny change in our DNA can ripple through thousands of generations, eventually resulting in the millions of blue-eyed individuals alive today - though ‘blue’ is in fact more of a mirage than a reality. It is fascinating to discover that blue eyes do not actually contain blue pigment at all: rather, their colour is the result of the ‘Tyndall Effect’, - an occurrence where light scatters off the protein fibres in the iris. This is the same principle of physics that makes the sky appear blue.
So where does this leave us? Surely in a context where there is more to our world and reality than we imagined, and even more connecting us to our past, each other and our myths and legends than we could have dreamed of. Blue Eyes Don’t Lie sets the bar high in terms of expectation. We know this is going to intrigue, puzzle and inspire the selected artists. We ourselves have arrived curious and ready to see how the artists have responded to this title and theme. It is a wonderfully inviting opener for the first show of a brand new programme and exciting cultural initiative: one that steps outside the prescribed gallery model and that provokes its audience to also venture out of their comfort zone and embrace a more perspicacious way of looking and thinking, as after all Blue Eyes Don’t Lie (do they?).
Introductory Note by Jane Neal
