On August 8, 2024, Câmpulung Muscel said goodbye to the last descendant of the illustrious Mirea family, doctor Anca Ruxandra Beatrice Mirea. She was known not only for her medical career, but also for her remarkable contribution to the local and national heritage. The news of her passing was announced by the rector of the “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest, Viorel Jinga, an institution to which Anca Mirea donated the magnificent property in the city center, known during the communist period as the “Pioneer House”, but with a much deeper historical significance: Vila Mirea.
The Mirea family has made a significant contribution to Romanian culture. Anca Mirea’s grandfather was the brother of the painter G.D. Mirea, one of the greatest Romanian portraitists, but also with the sculptor Dimitrie Mirea, the author of the bust of Radu Negru Vodă from Câmpulung. G.D. Mirea was close friends with great personalities such as Nicolae Grigorescu and Ștefan Luchian, participated in the War of Independence in 1877 and was for 25 years director of the School of Fine Arts in Bucharest, where he had the honor of handing over the diploma to Constantin Brâncuși. He also painted royal personalities such as Carol I and Ferdinand and created the famous work “Vârful cu Dor”, which, although awarded in Paris, is currently in Moscow.
Despite her age and health problems, Anca Mirea remained active in community life. In 2021, as part of the European event “Rendez vous aux jardins”, she received visitors in the garden of her villa, an oasis of greenery with exits on two streets, which has become an object of historical and landscape interest. In December 2022, he participated in the launch of the album "Painting in Muscel", made by Pavel Beloiu, an artist based in the USA, brother of the well-known doctor Mihai Beloiu. The album brings together the works of renowned painters linked to the Muscel area, among which G.D. Mirea has a leading place, with 100 works presented.
Pavel Beloiu's access to Vila Mirea after 2016 was possible through the generosity of Anca Mirea, who understood the historical and artistic value of the property. The architecture of the villa is attributed, according to several sources, to the architect Ion Mincu or his disciples, who was close to the Mirea family. According to Professor Carmen Oprescu, the Elie Mirea villa and other properties of the family in Câmpulung could bear the artistic imprint of Mincu, given the personal and professional ties between him and the members of the Mirea family.
The villa also had an important social role during the communist period, being transformed into the Pioneers' House in 1954. It hosted numerous educational, artistic and technical activities for children: from model airplane and ship circles, to folk dances and sculpture. In the 1970s, over 2,000 students attended these activities, giving a cultural and educational breath to the building.
Through her legacy, Anca Ruxandra Beatrice Mirea renewed the connection between Câmpulung's valuable past and its future. By donating Vila Mirea to the "Carol Davila" University, she ensured the preservation and valorization of a truly exceptional heritage, linked to some of the most important names in Romanian culture. Her death closes a chapter, but leaves open a priceless legacy.
Sursa: evenimentulmuscelean.ro
