Plan B, Cluj

Plan B functions as a production and exhibition space for contemporary art; at the same time it is a research center focusing on the Romanian art of the last 50 years, by revealing works of remarkable artists without previous international exposure. The name of the gallery—Plan B—is a reference to the general situation of the insufficient public resources supporting art spaces in Romania and the constant need to find alternative solutions. The ‘plan B’ strategy is animated by individual involvement, a different understanding of the institutional, and a coherent managerial policy. In 2009 Plan B was one of the initiators of the project Fabrica de Pensule / The Paintbrush Factory in Cluj, a collective independent cultural center, converted from the old paintbrush factory and hosting now about five art galleries and thirty artist studios. Plan B Cluj is undertaking a process of redefining itself towards a documentation center hosting an archive of the Romanian art from the last decades and a program of research and artist talks addressed especially to young scholars and art students. The research and documentation programs are coordinated by Diana Marincu, curator and art critic. The new gallery space design is a project of by the architecture office Planwerk, Cluj. In 2007 Plan B was the organizer of the Romanian Pavilion at the 52nd Venice Biennale, curated by Mihnea Mircan and including the artists Victor Man, Cristi Pogacean, Mona Vatamanu & Florin Tudor, Christoph Büchel & Giovanni Carmine. Mihai Pop is the curator of the Romanian Pavilion at the 56nd Venice Biennale in 2015, artist Adrian Ghenie.