Bontea Elena

About

She pursued specialized studies at the "Alexandru Plămădeală" Republican School of Fine Arts from 1952–1957, and then at the "Ilia Repin" Institute of Fine Arts in Leningrad, Department of Art History and Theory (graduating in 1966). She was a junior research fellow at the Museum of Fine Arts in Chișinău from 1957–1966, after which she taught at the "Alexei Șciusev" School of Arts in Chișinău from 1968–1972. She had solo exhibitions in Chișinău (1985, 1996, 2005, 2013), Bender (1986), Bamako (1988), Neusiedler (1995), and participated in numerous national and international group exhibitions. Elena Bontea created portraits of Moldovan writers: Grigore Vieru, A. Cibotaru, E. Damian, R. Portnoi, Nicolae Esinencu, Ion Vatamanu, among others. Her representative works include: Malanca, White Chrysanthemums, Viorica, Woman in Red, Ballad of Miorița, Autumn Song. Her works are held in the collections of museums in Chișinău, Madrid, Bacău, Alma-Ata, Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Odesa, as well as in private collections. Since 1965, Elena Bontea has been a member of the Union of Fine Artists of Moldova (UAM). She was a laureate of the "B. Glavan" Komsomol Prize of the Moldavian SSR in 1987. She received the UAP Award for Excellence in 2002 and 2005. She was decorated with the State Prize of the Republic of Moldova, the Order "Gloria Muncii" (Labor Glory), and the Medal "Meritul Civic" (Civic Merit), and since 2001 she is an Honored Artist. In 2013, the artist had a substantial solo exhibition at the National Museum of Art of Moldova, which benefited from a series of favorable and laudatory articles. A catalog with reproductions of her work was also published at that time. The introductory text was signed by art critic Vladimir Bulat. In 2015, she was included in the Anthology of Moldovan Painting, a bilingual English-Romanian edition, with texts signed by Vladimir Bulat.