The academic community of the Western University of Timișoara is deeply saddened by the passing away of Timișoara artist Nicu Covaci, UVT alumnus, founder and leader of the band Phoenix, a vibrant symbol of Romanian rock and the spirit of freedom that has always existed here, in Timișoara.

Born in Timișoara, on April 19, 1947, the artist Nicu Covaci translated his creative spirit into several artistic dimensions, in music, painting and graphics, being a graduate of the Institute of Plastic Arts in Timișoara, the current Faculty of Arts and Design from UVT.

In 1962, he founded the rock band Phoenix, which became a legend, a band appreciated by entire generations of Romanians. In 1976, Nicu Covaci, a brave, brave and free-spirited man, emigrated beyond the iron curtain of the Eastern European communist camp and continued to compose and sing, returning to the country's stages after the revolutionary transformation of December 1989.

In order to give well-deserved recognition to the artistic and public value that Nicu Covaci holds in our university community, as a graduate of the Faculty of Arts and Design, the Council of this faculty decided to propose to the UVT Senate that one of the interior spaces of the faculty should bear the name of Nicu Covaci, a multifunctional space, where teaching activities can be carried out and young students can be imbued with his spirit and personality, but also one with evocative value for the memory of the artist from Timisoara.