Mona Barbu
Where stillness
takes form
Textural abstract paintings built from layers of acrylic, ink and pigment — held in private collections across Europe and the United States.
- Featured in Art New York Magazine
- Selected for the XV Florence Biennale 2025
- Exhibited in Tokyo, London & Vienna
The work
Three bodies of work
Drawing from elemental forces — earth, water, air, fire and metal — Mona’s paintings evolve across interconnected series. Each one holds a different state of becoming.
Beginning
A study of emergence — where texture, movement, and silence converge into form.
Elements
Exploring the interconnectedness between natural forces and human existence, and its impact on the inner and outer worlds.
Permission to Play
Navigating the balance between structure and spontaneity, honoring play as a gateway to emotional truth and inner freedom.
In the studio
Between control and surrender
The process begins with intuitive mark-making and spontaneous play — layers of color, texture, and energy that unfold without a rigid plan. As distance and reflection enter the process, a story begins to take form.
The surface is refined with intention, balancing detail and emotion until the painting feels complete. Working with acrylics, inks, and water-soluble pigments, Mona builds each painting through pouring, masking, drawing, and subtraction.
“I create paintings that invite stillness — spaces where layered surfaces hold both calm and quiet intensity, encouraging the viewer to pause, look closely, and sense what unfolds beneath the visible.”
The artist
Mona Barbu
Mona Barbu is a Bucharest-based abstract artist whose work unfolds through layered surfaces, fluid movement, and quiet material tension.
Pigment settles, dissolves, and re-emerges — forming textures that feel both grounded and atmospheric. Her paintings suggest landscapes that are not seen, but sensed: traces of earth, water, air, and light held within the surface.
Her practice explores transformation as a continuous state — where stillness carries movement, and depth reveals itself over time.
- Collected
- Private collections across Europe and the United States
- Medium
- Acrylic, ink and water-soluble pigment
- Series
- Elements · Beginning · Permission to Play
- Based in
- Bucharest, Romania
Recognition
Press, selections & exhibitions
Selected exhibitions
- 2026Tokyo Exhibition Design Festa Gallery, Harajuku, Tokyo In person
- 2026Milan Art Show Arrival Gallery, Milan Digital
- 2024Weihnachts Zum Opernhaus Vienna In person
- 2024Art On Loop Amsterdam Digital
- 2024Artfait London In person
- 2024Blended Visions – Colors in Conversation Virtual exhibit, Italy Digital
- 2023Undecember Istanbul Digital
Collectors
In collectors’ words
“Her pieces have so much depth and ethereal movement to them.”
“The piece is absolutely stunning in person, as well as the little gifts she provided.”
“I received the art today and cannot be happier.”
Collector reviews on Cohart · Read all reviews
Explore
Find your way to Mona’s art
- For collectors & galleriesOriginal paintings
- For interior designersFine art prints
- For art loversEveryday artComing soon
Commissions and gallery enquiries · Get in touch