The Redemption Cathedral currently being built in Bucharest, the gym suit paired with regular shows and an online icon of Romanian monk Arsenie Boca have made the list of the most relevant Romanian kitsch in a contest organized by the Romanian Kitsch Museum.

The voting took place between July 15 and July 31 and over 10,000 participants cast their vote.

The contest had five categories: historical and legendary kitsch, architecture and monuments, decorative art and interior design, culture and fashion, and media and digital.

Arsenie Boca leads the nominations in the historical and legendary kitsch category. The Romanian Orthodox monk can nowadays be found on a range of merchandise, from car deodorizers to refrigerator magnets. He is followed in the category by Elena Ceausescu, the wife of late dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. She was a member of the Romanian Academy despite not having graduated from high-school. Dracula is third in the same category, followed by Romanians' ancestors the Dacians, who inspired several local legends exaggerating the importance of their culture, and by Mos Gerila, the communist era version of Santa Claus.

The architecture and monuments category is topped by the Redemption Cathedral. The People’s Redemption Cathedral (pictured), the largest church to be built in Romania, is located near the Parliament’s Palace. In April, it was announced that the cathedral will have one of the biggest bells in the world. It has 25 tons and its sound could be heard in half of Bucharest.

The same category includes a replica of the Eiffel tower located in the South East Romania city of Slobozia, the People Palace, one of the most visited tourist sites in the capital, and the Renaissance Monument set across the street from the National Art Museum in Bucharest.

A carpet depicting the Abduction from the Seraglio came first in the decorative art and interior design category. It was followed by towels with various imprints used by truck drivers, and the glass-made fish many Romanians used to keep on their TV set as an ornament.

The pairing of a gym suit with regular shoes was deemed most relevant for the culture and fashion category, where fluff sandals and the penguin dance were also included.

In the media and digital category, the online presence of cocalari and pitzipoance ranked first. The Romanian terms satirically refer to men and women of tacky taste and behavior. The text messages sent for various holidays and the tabloid headlines came out second and third in the category.

The categories and nominations were drawn up by a committee made up of: Sergiu Vasile of Utopia Balcanica and Timesnewroman satirical publication; Mihai Popescu of VICE; copywriter Corina Bacanu; Cristian Simonca of Blogu’ lui Otrava; and Cristian Lica, kitsch manager at the Romanian Kitsch Museum.

The results of the survey are available here.

editor@romania-insider.com