Background

Cojan was born in Beceni, Buzau, Romania, on March 3, 1914, to a well-to-do family which finally lost everything.

Education

Aurel Cojan started his studies in law and architecture under pressure from his parents, which he soon abandoned to devote himself exclusively to painting. He briefly attended the courses at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bucharest. He was trained there by Francis Şirato and Camil Ressu, both prominent Romanian painters. But as Cojan said later, his studies there did him "more harm than good."

Career

Cojan held one-man exhibitions at the Hassefer Gallery, as well as in the halls of the Romanian Atheneum between 1945 and 1947. Then, for a period of fifteen years, he had not been allowed to exhibit his artworks. Around 1960, due to a relative opening of the regime, Cojan was able to participate in several exhibitions abroad. More than sixty of his paintings were exhibited on the occasion of an important international homage to Brancusi organized in Bucharest.

Despite the recognition and permanent state acquisition, the artist decided to leave Romania. In 1969 he moved to Paris where the artist remained for the rest of his life. He received a political asylum there. His first days in Paris were extremely difficult and he, first of all, survived thanks to the help of the Secours Catholique, a nonprofit association.

Wandering around Paris, he was amazed by the atmosphere and the uncontrolled verve of the streets, that inspired him to paint street scenes, urban landscapes and portraits. In 1974 he had his first Parisian exhibition at the Artemon Gallery.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Aurel Cojan participated in the exhibitions organized at the Charles Chevalier Gallery, Raph Gallery, Jacques Barbier Gallery and Francois Mitaine Gallery in Paris. He also took part in the group exhibitions "Comparaisons", "Réalités nouvelles", "Salon de Villeparisis" and a museum exhibition at the Museum of Clermont Ferrand.

In 1978 Cojan was noticed by Dany Block during his show at the Modern Art Museum of Paris. Aurel Cojan held a solo exhibition at the Barbier-Beltz Gallery, Paris, in 1988. In 1995 the artist organized his one-man exhibition at the Barbier-Beltz Gallery. The same year, the French magazine "Beaux-Arts Magazine" published the first article about him under the title "Aurel Cojan’s Horrible Youth". It was written by Eric Suchère.

Cojan entered the Alain Margaron Gallery, which was his exclusive dealer right from 1997 and until the artist’s death. This collaboration led to numerous solo exhibitions in 1998, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 and the publishing of books about the artist. In 1999 he had a solo exhibition at the Romanian Cultural Centre in Paris.

Achievements

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  Aurel Cojan was a well-known artist of his time. For his artistic achievements, the artist became a recipient of a number of awards. For instance, in 1966 he received the Painting Prize from the Union of Artists. In 1983 he was granted the award Chevalier des Arts et Lettres from the French Ministry of Culture. Finally, in 1996, when he was 81, Cojan received the Young Painter Prize from Beaux Arts Magazine.
  
  Many of the artworks by the artist have been sold at auction, including his painting "Output from Bread Factory", which was sold at Artmark "Avant guarde and Expressionism Sale" in 2012.

Works

More photos

• painting

  • Untitled

  • Personnages 2

  • Abstraction

  • Abstract Composition 5

  • Nature Morte

  • Personnages

  • Composition with Characters

  • Scene de rue

  • Flower

  • Jardin fleuri

  • La femme en mauve

  • The Autumn

  • Dispute d'argent

  • Abstract Composition 13

  • Vase with Flowers

  • À la bibliotheque

  • Abstract Composition with Flowers

  • Le printemps

  • Abstract Composition 9

  • Mouvement

  • Abstraction

  • Abstract Composition 18

  • Composition with Mauve Background

  • Chimeras in the Workshop

  • Composition with Green

  • Une longue promenade

  • Abstraction

  • Nude 2

  • Portrait 4

  • Vase with Flowers 3

  • Nature morte au pichet

  • Nature Morte

  • Abstract Composition 6

  • Feuillage d'automne

  • Woman Profile

  • Nu

  • Composition in Black and Green

  • Abstract Composition 11

  • Composition

  • Scene de rue

  • Portrait in Watercolor 2

  • Abstract Composition 15

  • Vue sur la seine

  • Nude Against Pink Background

  • Personnages

  • Abstraction

  • Paysage animé

  • Benches in the Park

  • Composition with White Background

  • Portrait

Personality

Quotes from others about the person

• Manuel Jover: "Cojan is a painter who it is impossible to classify, both figurative and abstract at the same time, partly linked to the School of Paris, partly engaged in a quest for a pictorial freedom whose sparks, lashings-out, and dry viciousness or veiled melancholy are not easily forgotten."

Connections

Aurel Cojan married Iléana Dumitriu Cojan, who was also a painter, in 1948.

Spouse:

Iléana Dumitriu Cojan