Horia Creangă

Horia Creangă (20 July 1892 – 1 August 1943) was a Romanian architect and key figure of the modernist movement in Romania. Described as "the true founder of the modernist age" in his native county, he is best known as the designer of the first large scale modernist building in Romania, the ARO building on Magheru Boulevard, Bucharest, completed in 1931.

Early life Born in Bucharest on 20 July 1892, the grandson of the famous Romanian writer Ion Creangă, he studied at the Bucharest School of Architecture in 1916 before attending the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, graduating in 1925. His mentor, Gustave Umbdenstock, then secured a position for him in the Romanian Nord Railway company, and in late 1926, he returned to Romania with his wife Lucia. and established Creangă's career.

In 1935, he opened an office with architects Haralamb Georgescu and Nicolae Nedelescu, working primarily for three clients: ARO insurance, Malaxa industries, and Bucharest City Hall. For these clients Creangă designed industrial, office and residential buildings,

Creangă was married to fellow architect Lucia Dumbrăveanu, with whom he had a daughter, Mihaela Creangă-Mihăescu. He owned two apartments in , where he lived and had his workshop. His career was cut short by his death when he was only 51.

Selected projects Drawn from the article on Horia Creangă from the Century of Romanian Architecture website, and Romanian Modernism 1920–1940 Teatrul Giulești (now Opera Copiilor), Calea Giulești, Bucharest (1927–29) Corneliu Medrea Villa, Andrei Mureșan Street 2, Bucharest (1929) Villa Ion Miclescu, 56 Paris Street, Bucharest (1930) ARO Building, 12-14 Magheru Boulevard, Bucharest (1930–1931); Patria Cinema added 1934–35 Dr. Petru Groza Villa, Deva (1929–1931) Villa Thomas, 15 Iatropol Street, Bucharest (1931) Villa Alexandru Bunescu, 12 Aleea Alexandru, Bucharest (1932) Anton Davidoglu apartments, Dacia Boulevard corner Piața Spaniei, Bucharest (1932) Republic Stadium, Bucharest (with Haralamb Georgescu) (1933–1939), demolished 1988 Elena Ottulescu apartments, 12 General Gheorghe Manu Street, Bucharest (1934–1935) Vila Elizabeta Cantacuzino, Aleea Alexandru nr. 15, Bucharest (1936) ARO Apartment Building, 91-93 Calea Victoriei, Bucharest (1936–1938) Malaxa (later FAUR) Factory, auto factory, pipe factory, administration and entrance, Bucharest (1930-1939) Malaxa-Burileanu Building, 35 Magheru Boulevard, Bucharest (1935–1937) Low cost housing complex, 52-58 Șoseaua Iancului, 4-24 Victor Manu Street, Bucharest (1937) National-Cultural Palace, Teatral'na Ploshcha (Theatre Square), Cernăuți, (now Chernivtsi, Ukraine) (1937–40). ARO Palace Hotel, Brașov (with Haralamb Georgescu) (1937–1939)

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