PERSEUS (1986) Sculpture by Igor Mitoraj

In order to create the work, he used the following techniques: stone and bronze. It is an alloy known from ancient times that gave its name to the entire Bronze Age. The primary constituents of bronze are copper and tin, although other metals are also used. This alloy owes its name to the town of Brundisium in Italy, which has become the center of bronze production. Casting technique made it tools for farmers and artisans, but it also became popular as an artistic material. As early as in the archaic period in Greece and in ancient Egypt, Persia and Asia Minor, bronze sculptures were obtained using the lost wax method. The "lost wax technique" consists in surrounding the wax sculpture with clay or plaster, removing the wax through high temperature and pouring hot bronze in its place, and then removing the clay or plaster mold. This technique functions in the artistic world to this day, although of course it has been improved. The most famous bronze sculptures were made by Cellini, Donatello, August Rodin, and in Poland by Bolesław Biegas and Wacław Szymanowski.

The artist made a sculpture in the style of realism. This trend has been present in art since the 17th century, and since the 1970s it has been returning as hyperrealism, that is, an extremely detailed depiction of real visual forms.

The main theme of the work is man. It is a topic that has been appearing in art continuously since the time of the first drawings on the walls of caves. Human profiles appeared in various contexts: from aesthetic to political-social and propaganda.

The atmosphere of the sculpture can be described as calm, combined with the atmosphere of meditation, contemplation of a work of art and is achieved through minimalist compositions or subdued colors.

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