Of Stone and Steel.

officelondon
Oct 29, 2024
4 min read

Updated: Jul 31

A Voyage into the World of Urbex

An amazing photographic foray into forsaken buildings all over Romania!

Tue 29 Oct | Romanian Cultural Institute

The Romanian Cultural Institute and the Embassy of Romania in London were delighted to organize the Private View of Her Royal Highness Princess Sofia of Romania, the acclaimed photography exhibition Of Stone and Steel. A journey into the world of Urbex. Created by HRH Princess Sophie in collaboration with Jean Milligan and Irina Andreea Cristea, the exhibition featured over 20 stunning photographic panels depicting a fascinating foray into abandoned buildings across Romania. After two years of preparation and careful planning, the authors travelled to different areas of Romania. They delved into the depths of abandoned or forgotten buildings, revealing the stories and secrets hidden within their walls.

It was Princess Sophie’s birthday too, so the evening was truly special and saw a remarkable turnout of art lovers, members of London’s international community, as well as the Romanian diaspora. Princess Elena, Princess Sophie’s sister, joined us alongside her family.

The evening began with a warm welcome from RCI Director Aura Woodward, followed by Princess Sophie’s remarks, in which she shared her vision and the creative journey behind this exhibition. Her words brought to life the emotion captured in each piece on display, offering everyone a unique insight into her artistic world.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to HE Mrs. Laura Popescu, Romania’s Ambassador in the UK, for her support and for joining us on this special evening. Her presence, alongside that of the many friends and supporters of the Institute, contributed to the warm, celebratory atmosphere that made this event truly memorable.

The Private Viewing of the exhibition, accompanied by an introduction by Her Royal Highness Princess Sofia of Romania, took place on October 29, at 7:00 p.m. The exhibition will be open at the "Constantin Brâncusi" Gallery of the Romanian Cultural Institute from Monday to Friday, 10:00 - 17:00, until November 15.

BIOGRAPHIES

Her Royal Highness Princess Sophie, the fourth daughter of King Michael, has been passionate about telling stories through art since childhood. Her father’s personal photographs, notably the ones he took as a young man of the Carpathian Mountains, inspired her at a very young age to pick up a camera. Today Her Royal Highness is an internationally recognised photographer, having exhibited her work throughout Europe and beyond. She is the recipient of the Kotinos International Award for Excellence in Photography Art 2018, given in collaboration with the Philanthropy International Organisation and the Saned International Organisation. Princess Sophie is a senior working member of the Romanian Royal Family. She complements her mission with her professional activity as a photographer. To this end, she created a long-term umbrella project called “Romania, A Celebration” which covers various subjects by capturing and documenting the country’s diverse cultures, history, environment, and way of life and by creating visual journeys through Romania that offer extraordinary insights to facets of the country rarely seen, both in Romania and abroad. The exhibition “Of Stone and Steel. A Voyage into the World of Urbex”, you are seeing today, is the fourth chapter of “Romania, a Celebration”. Her Royal Highness is also an author. In 1995 she published a volume of children’s stories in Bucharest, following in the footsteps of her great-grandmother Queen Marie. Her first photographic book “The Romanian Monastery - Celebrating Romania’s Spiritual Communities”, was published in 2021. Her second photographic book was published in 2023 and complements the present exhibition. Aside from her public activities alongside Her Majesty Margareta the Custodian of the Romanian Crown, complemented by her photographic endeavours to promote Romania, Her Royal Highness continues to write. She is working on new children’s books together with her only child, Eelaz, an artist, who will create the illustrations. To be created in the coming years, this project has a special place in Princess Sophie’s heart due to its personal nature, but equally to encourage early literacy in young children thus helping the next generation to develop reading skills.

Irina-Andreea Cristea is the assistant to Her Royal Highness Princess Sophie’s photographic project. She got involved having worked for the Royal Family as a guide at the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest. For “Of Stone and Steel. A Voyage into the World of Urbex” she was in charge of organizing the logistical aspect of this project. Irina set up interviews, talked to local authorities to get access and authorisation to various places relevant to the project, and made precise daily schedules for the whole team.

Jean Milligan has a strong connection with Romania as she lived there from 1990-1991 and was subsequently the director of The Margareta of Romania Royal Foundation, for several years in the 1990s at the Swiss branch of the Foundation. She has remained close to the Romanian Royal family ever since, particularly so to Princess Sophie. Working with Irina-Andreea Cristea, Jean interviewed the people who had strong connections to the places visited, helping shape the project in situ and bringing you this final aspect you can see today.

Photography by Alex Coman