Ion Valentin Anestin (December 24, 1900 – December 6, 1963) was a

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

n graphic artist, engraver, painter, sculptor, journalist and dramatist. Noted as a caricaturist and art critic, he was the father of Ion Nuni Anestin, himself a visual artist and actor.

Biography

Born in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

to a family originating from

Craiova Craiova (, also , ) is the largest city in southwestern Romania, List of Romanian cities, the seventh largest city in the country and the capital of Dolj County, situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It i ...

, he was the son of Theodor Anestin, a draftsman employed by the Bucharest Mayor's Office, and the grandson of Ion Anestin, an actor noted for his friendship with the dramatist Ion Luca Caragiale.Review of "Lumea caricaturii – cu zâmbetul în colțul gurii" ("The World of Caricature – With a Smile in the Corner of the Mouth")
2006 exhibit at the National Museum of Art of Romania (hosted by infoart.ro) Mariana Vida
"Un caricaturist uitat: Ion Valentin Anestin" ("A Forgotten Caricaturist: Ion Valentin Anestin")
, in '' Ziarul Financiar'', August 4, 2006 One of his uncles, Victor, was an astronomer, and another, Alexandru, a journalist. In 1918–1920, he attended the Bucharest Fine Arts Academy, where he was taught by the sculptor Franz Storck, and then moved on to the Free Art Academy, founded by painter Arthur Verona. After 1921, Anestin became a theater and art gallery chronicler, while authoring various theater plays. It was during the period that he also became noted for his satirical cartoons and portraits, heavily influenced by the French school of drawing. Together with writer Mircea Eliade, Ion Valentin Anestin published the magazine ''Est-Vest'', which was established in 1927 and ceased its existence after only a couple of issues. Mircea Eliade, ''Autobiography'',

University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the university press of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It pu ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, 1990, , p.130 In 1928, he joined Vladimir Donescu on the staff of '' Vremea'', editing its theater and art page between 1931 and 1943, while being responsible for the journal's graphic design. Paula Romanescu
"Ion Ion la Palat" ("Ion Ion at the Royal Palace")
in '' Viața Medicală'', nr.38, September 22, 2006 In parallel, Anestin contributed to a large number of newspapers and magazines (including '' Epoca'', '' Adevărul Literar și Artistic'', '' Timpul'', ''Gluma'', ''Cuvântul Liber'', and the

Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ; PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave an ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that would replace the social system ...

's ''Bluze Albastre''), and became a trend-setter in graphic art for the entire

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

. Noted for his

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...

convictions, he drew individual and group satirical portraits of major figures of his day, both Romanian ( Nicolae Titulescu, Alexandru Averescu,

Lucian Blaga Lucian Blaga (; 9 May 1895 – 6 May 1961) was a Romanians, Romanian philosopher, poet, playwright, poetry translator and novelist. He is considered one of the greatest philosophers and poets of Romania, and a prominent philosopher of the twenti ...

, Ion Inculeț, Ion Mihalache, Iuliu Maniu, Gheorghe Tătărescu, Octavian Goga) and foreign (

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

, and

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

). Additionally, Anestin was known for his original creation, the character Ion Ion, a staple of his work during the 1930s. Ion Ion was depicted as a young man with a

top hat A top hat (also called a high hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally made of black silk or ...

or a bowler hat, carrying an umbrella, but having no shirt and trousers. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, beginning a month before the

Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina Between 28 June and 3 July 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, following an ultimatum made to Romania on 26 June 1940 that threatened the use of force. Those regions, with a total area of and a population of 3,776 ...

and continuing throughout Romania's alliance with the

Axis Powers The Axis powers, originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis and also Rome–Berlin–Tokyo Axis, was the military coalition which initiated World War II and fought against the Allies of World War II, Allies. Its principal members were Nazi Ge ...

(''see

Romania during World War II The Kingdom of Romania, under the rule of King Carol II of Romania, King Carol II, initially maintained Neutral country, neutrality in World War II. However, fascist political forces, especially the Iron Guard, rose in popularity and power, urgi ...

''), Anestin's work centered on denouncing Stalin and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, in a series titled ''Măcelarul din Piața Roșie'' ("The

Red Square Red Square ( rus, Красная площадь, Krasnaya ploshchad', p=ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːɪtʲ) is one of the oldest and largest town square, squares in Moscow, Russia. It is located in Moscow's historic centre, along the eastern walls of ...

Butcher") published by the magazine ''Gluma''. Raluca Alexandrescu
"Mai multe începuturi de drum" ("Several Road Starts")
, interview with Ioana Zlotescu, in '' Observator Cultural'' Nicole Sima
"Cred în Moș Crăciun!" ("I Believe in Santa Claus!"), memoir hosted by LiterNet
/ref> Following the start of Soviet occupation, the artist was barred from publishing by the censorship apparatus for a five-year period (1944–1949), and ultimately imprisoned. He died soon after his release.

Selected filmography

*''

Mihail, câine de circ ''Mihail, câine de circ'' () is a 1979 Romanian adventure film directed by Sergiu Nicolaescu. It is based on the novel '' Michael, Brother of Jerry'' by Jack London. Cast * Karl Michael Vogler – Dag Daughtry * Ernest Maftei – Greenleaf * ...

'' (1979)

References

External links

Chronicle of the 2006 exhibit, in ''B24 Fun''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anestin, Ion Valentin Romanian art critics Romanian caricaturists Romanian editorial cartoonists 20th-century Romanian illustrators Romanian theatre critics Censorship in Romania Artists from Bucharest Romanian people of World War II 1900 births 1963 deaths 20th-century Romanian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Romanian sculptors 20th-century Romanian painters 20th-century Romanian essayists 20th-century Romanian journalists Romanian satirists