Milan Chengdu Beijing Izmir Helsinki Vancouver Manchester

Bucharest in Shades of Monochrome

“It was very kind of you to take the trouble to write and share a little bit about your work with The King as you did, and it was heartening that your recent showcase on December 1st, 2025, was well received.”

The Correspondence Department
Buckingham Palace
OFFICIAL

NB:The December 1st, 2025, Romanian National Day celebration at the Manchester Art Gallery was organised by the Consulate General of Romania in Manchester and included Mark’s work ‘Bucharest in Shades of Monochrome’.

Stepping foot inside Bucharest that first time a decade ago, I felt instinctively challenged to explore its historical beauty, its heart and pulse, but preferred to avoid the confrontation, seeing no further than what was immediately apparent.

Immersed in my work about the Greek Cyclades islands presented by the Hellenic Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Culture at exhibitions in China and Turkey, and by the Department of Culture of the Milan Municipality in Italy, the Mediterranean environment had, for a number of years, fully captured my focus, energy and passion.

A return to the Romanian capital in 2024 brought with it the decision to study the cityscape environment specifically in monochrome, with the resulting images captivating my imagination and causing an urge to proceed.

With architecture so diverse, from the Brancovan style of the 17th and 18th centuries characterised by the integration of Baroque and Oriental features, and the Phanariote period with its origins in Istanbul; the Neoclassical and Gothic Revival styles of the early to mid 19th century under the reign of Alexandru Ioan Cuza; Beau-Arts, also known as Eclectic, in King Carol I’s reign (1866 - 1914), and Belle Epoque from 1877 to 1916 with its complex details; Art Nouveau with its natural forms (1890 - 1914); between the wars (1918 - 1940): Romanian Revival, Moorish, Art Deco and Modernism; the Communist period from 1948 to 1989; Contemporary (1989 - present), I now explore Bucharest as if on a journey into the distant past, an experience of true amazement.

The project was presented by the Embassy of Romania in Helsinki during the two Romanian presidential elections of 2024 and 2025, by the Consulate General of Romania in Vancouver at a European festival, and more recently by the Consulate General of Romania in Manchester as part of the December 1st Romanian National Day celebrations at the historical Manchester Art Gallery.

“Your work reflects Europe’s unity through its vibrant cultural diversity—an essential foundation of the European project,” to quote Ms.  Catherine M. in her letter to Mark Wilman on behalf of Commissioner Mînzatu. 

EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EDUCATION, YOUTH, SPORT AND CULTURE

Discovering The Beauty Of The Cyclades

“Par ailleurs, concernant l’exposition de vos photographies, le Président de la République française (Monsieur Emmanuel MACRON) tient à vous en féliciter et à vous souhaiter beaucoup de succès dans la poursuite de votre activité artistique.”

Translation: “Furthermore, regarding the exhibition of your photographs, the President of the French Republic (Mr. Emmanuel Macron) wishes to congratulate you and wish you much success in the continuation of your artistic activity.”

Le Chef de Cabinet du Président de la République
PALAIS DE L’ÉLYSÉE

An extract from a letter to Mark Wilman from the Elysée Palace. The exhibition mentioned refers to the showcasing of the artist’s project ‘Discovering The Beauty Of The Cyclades’ at the Adnan Saygun Art Center in Izmir, Turkey, in March 2022, which saw a cooperation between the Consulate General of Greece in Izmir (Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs) together with the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, with official support from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture.

“In particular, I remember a personal photographic exhibition, which had a remarkable success, organised by the Department of Culture of the Milan Municipality, which took place at the premises of the Civic Aquarium in June 2019. The splendid marine panoramas of the Cyclades, portrayed by the lens of the artist photographer blended well with the marine life exhibited inside the display tanks in the adjacent rooms.

I refer to his website, www.markwilman.com, the reconnaissance of the splendid views captured by his eye as an artist of photographic images, as well as the truly remarkable list that the cultural institutions of various countries, European and non-European, have laudably dedicated to him, organising exhibitions and writing flattering texts and comments.”

Honourable Gabriele Albertini
Mayor of Milan 1997-2006, Member of the EU Parliament 2004-2013, Senator of the Italian Republic 2013-2018

A translation of extracts from a letter about the artist written by Honourable Gabriele Albertini.

The Discovering The Beauty Of The Cyclades project is the result of more than six years of personal research in this Greek archipelago stemming from my exploration there as a child in the 1970s. The About page has a link to a published article on In+Sights Greece magazine regarding my first visit. The origins of the work have been discussed in detail in the Introduction, including the presence of the female form and how the ‘Lost Lady of Sikinos, Neiko’ images anticipated by two years a highly significant archeological find, making it the project’s natural centrepiece.

Presented by Embassies and Consulates of Greece in China, Germany, France, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Serbia, UK, USA, plus the British Embassy in Athens, on their social media platforms (see the Home and Media pages), and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic in an interview with me on its Greek News Agenda website, the project had its first exhibition at the Aquarium of Milan in spring 2019 promoted by the Department of Culture of the Milan Municipality in Italy.

In autumn 2020, along with aerial views of Tinos island by A. Kontogeorgis, the work represented Greece at the Chengdu Europe Culture Season under the title ‘Discovering The Beauty Of The Cyclades - A Glimpse of the Aegean Sea’, specifically at the Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, with a personal presentation at the inauguration by Greek Ambassador to China, Mr. Georgios Iliopoulos. Organised by the Embassy of Greece in Beijing and Chengdu Foreign Affairs Office, official support was given by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports together with the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades in the use of the video ‘The Secrets of the Episkopi of Sikinos’ to accompany ‘Lost Lady of Sikinos, Neiko’ with a panoramic view of the monumental church of Episkopi.

In 2021, the Embassy selected a number of photos from the project to represent Greece at a Belt and Road Initiative exhibition in Beijing. The next presentation took place in Izmir, Turkey from 1st to 20th March 2022 at the Adnan Saygun Sanat Merkezi Arts Center organised by the Consulate General of Greece in cooperation with the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, with official support from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports and Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades. I personally attended the closing event on the 17th March, as can be seen in my blog post. MW