Art of Ideas Gallery: A hidden gem right in our backyard

The beautiful Art of Ideas Gallery is located at 236 Jones St. E. Not only is the architecture of the outside unique, but the inside is also absolutely stunning.

By Wendy Lamond

One of the perks of my job is to be able to meet some inspiring people and to come across some hidden gems in our community that need to be shared.

I came across one of these hidden gems when I met with Elena Dumitru and took a tour of the Art of Ideas Gallery located at 236 Jones St. E in St. Marys. Many people in our town know the house. It is that big, beautiful, red-brick home at the corner of Jones and King streets that has unique architecture and some very creative art on the lawn.

What many don’t know is inside, one can find stunning art and creations, all brilliantly displayed in a storytelling format from the ingenious mind of Romanian Canadian artist Eugen-Florin Zamfirescu, who is also Dumitru’s husband.

Many artists have one genre or one colour palette. What makes Zamfirescu so unique is his willingness to cross categories when expressing his creative visions, whether it be oil paintings, sculptures, photography, installation art and so much more.

The couple are both Romanian. After leaving their native country, they lived in England for six years and then decided to move to Toronto. When the apartment they were living in was filling up with art, they decided it was time for more space. Originally, they were looking in Stratford but took a drive to St. Marys where they came across and fell in love with their current house, which was for sale at the time. After a series of events that fell into place, one being their current street in Toronto was King Street and the house of their dreams also being on a King Street, the couple felt like it was meant to be. The rest, as they say, is history.

The Art of Ideas Gallery has been open for close to four years now and offers three guided tours. No matter which tour visitors take, they will experience the whole space as well as the art.

“An Unexpected Journey” takes approximately 90 minutes and is a journey into the mind of Zamfirescu, a tour where guests will learn about his art and artistic ethos, about our past and present, as well as a possible future. As guests travel to the upper galleries, they will be swept from string theory into deep space.

Many visitors have shared with Dumitru that the name “An Unexpected Journey” is exactly how they describe the tour. It goes over and above what they were anticipating.

The second tour is called “Echoes of Elegance.” This tour also takes approximately 90 minutes but covers a history of the house, its unique architecture and most famous inhabitants, fascinating stories about pieces of furniture and more; a truly wonderful journey through time.

“Dial, Discover and Dream: A Fascinating Tour of Ingenious Machines” is the third tour. Anyone who enjoys vintage measuring and communication equipment should consider this one. It is a journey through imagination, progression and technology of the past, present and future.

The tours are available on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays in the summer. However, if the times for the set tours are not doable, Dumitru said that they are flexible and will find a time that works on other days and times of the year. The set times can be found on their website at www.artofideasgallery.com.

What makes Art of Ideas unique is it is not a public gallery, nor a private commercial gallery. It is a private home and an artist studio full of stories to be told and heard, all originating from a brilliant mind.

According to Dumitru, Zamfirescu doesn’t like to be put in a square because his mind is not in a square.

“He loves arts, he loves science, he loves technology, history, time, old instruments and so much more. He also loves carpentry, taking things apart and creating things, so you can just imagine the curiosity that drives his creativity,” she said.

What caught my attention walking in was not only the old bend-work woodworking but Zamfirescu’s oil paintings in the lower gallery. The paintings tell a story from the history of civilization. Each painting took the artist a year to complete as he uses the techniques of the old masters of the Renaissance. Every painting represents a period of time in history, from primitive times to present, to far into our future. One of the paintings depicts a ship in a storm symbolizing difficult times such as war, plague or any other hardships that we as humans have encountered throughout history.

Another painting that stood out is one of Dumitru’s father who passed away three years ago. The painting is called MNEMOSYNE (the Goddess of Memory). It is of an old cowboy who can no longer ride a horse but by holding the saddle, can remember the old days. Dumitru’s father was the model, and the details are so accurate that according to Dumitru, if her dad was there, his hand would be identical to the painting.

As we arrive in the upper galleries, we encounter the String Theory series, a group of paintings that involve elements from the periodic table. Every atom in the universe vibrates, but we as humans cannot hear that vibration. In the creative mind of Zamfirescu, he has put into painting how these elements, these atoms would look and sound when being played as a frequency generator in a musical instrument. The beauty of it is also the fact there is a hand of a real musician in every painting.

What does the future hold for the gallery? According to Dumitru, there is so much potential to tap into. There are potential garden tours and interactive art tours for kids. One suggestion that we discussed was the possibility of an art show that includes art, music, poetry and film.

I could go on about this remarkable place, but it needs to be seen in person to appreciate all of Zamfirescu’s creations.

“The goal of art and the goal of our gallery is to open new horizons, to help the viewer see inside the mind of an artist, in this case a living artist. Art is open to interpretation, which makes it even more interesting because its meaning can differ from one person to the next, depending on how it is viewed,” said Dumitru.

Not only is seeing Zamfirescu’s creations inspiring, but the knowledge that Dumitru has when running a tour is very inspiring. Be prepared to learn a lot. The gallery takes guests on an educational journey into the past, that also opens theirs minds to the future.