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Paula Craioveanu
BOY WITH UNICORN - original painting by Paula Craioveanu Neo Mythology

2025

$4,000
$5,00020% Off
£3,038.65
£3,798.3220% Off
€3,498.99
€4,373.7420% Off
CA$5,722.40
CA$7,153.0120% Off
A$6,276.92
A$7,846.1620% Off
CHF 3,236.77
CHF 4,045.9720% Off
MX$74,971.63
MX$93,714.5420% Off
NOK 41,052.14
NOK 51,315.1820% Off
SEK 38,511.57
SEK 48,139.4620% Off
DKK 26,147.90
DKK 32,684.8820% Off

About the Item

"Boy with Unicorn", acrylic on canvas, 100x100cm, 39×39in Shipped rolled in a tube. Comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by the artist. “Boy with Unicorn” is a powerful and thoughtfully executed reinterpretation of Raphael’s “Lady with a Unicorn”—transposed into a bold, expressive, and gender-swapped modern allegory. Swapping the female figure for a male challenges classical gendered symbolism. In Raphael’s painting, the unicorn symbolizes chastity and purity; here, that symbolism is recontextualized. The male figure is both vulnerable and heroic—exposed but calm, inviting a dialogue about modern masculinity. The unicorn, stylized with bold contours and exaggerated proportions, maintains its mythical aura. It feels like a guardian or steed rather than a passive symbol. The integration of wings gives it a hybrid, almost chimerical quality—suggesting transcendence or a dreamlike inner vision. The central positioning of the boy and unicorn echoes Renaissance symmetry. The use of flat color blocks behind the figures (the red and blue) pushes the background into abstraction, detaching the subject from realism and anchoring it in the psychological or symbolic realm. The brushstrokes are energetic and textured, bordering on Expressionism. There's a tension between realism (in anatomy and volume) and abstraction (background and unicorn's stylization), creating an emotional intensity. The use of deep reds, aqua blues, and flesh tones creates a deliberate contrast—invoking both Renaissance warmth and modern emotional dynamism. These color choices also bring to mind Neo-Expressionism, particularly reminiscent of early 1980s figurative revival painting. Unlike Raphael’s calm pastoral background, this version has a surreal, almost stage-set backdrop. This emphasizes the theatricality of identity and the constructed nature of classical ideals. The original Raphael painting was about societal virtue, coded femininity, and Renaissance ideals of harmony. This modern version seems to invert or question these ideals: Is purity still relevant? What does myth mean in an age of self-invention? How do we reframe canonical works in a today’s world? This reinterpretation is part of a broader trend in contemporary figuration—other artists also revisit Old Masters to challenge colonial, gendered, and aesthetic hierarchies.
  • Creator:
    Paula Craioveanu (1976, Romanian)
  • Creation Year:
    2025
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 39.38 in (100 cm)Width: 39.38 in (100 cm)Depth: 0.79 in (2 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Forest Hills, NY
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: Romanian-American artist. PhD in Visual Arts.1stDibs: LU2240216814232

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