Mariusz DYDO (1979), Driad on the Bison; 2021

Patinated bronze; 34.5 cm x 28 cm x 15 cm
Signature on base: M. DYDO

Dydo operates with a synthetic form, combining an archaic order of representation with a distinctly contemporary stylizing gesture. The composition is based on the juxtaposition of two figures: a female figure with features of a Dryad and a monumentalized bison, whose silhouette has been transformed by the introduction of skids.
The artist builds a tension between primitiveness and cultural transformation. An animal rooted in prehistoric iconography and evoking associations with rock paintings is tamed and inscribed into the order of human imagination through the element of a toy. The Dryad, as an intermediary figure between nature and the human world, reinforces this dialogue, adding a symbolic dimension to the whole.
Dydo also draws on the tradition of sculpture at the turn of the 20th century - evident in the way the body is modeled or the surface is rhythmized. At the same time, the simplification and synthetization of details inscribe the work in the language of contemporary sculpture, which operates with signs and abbreviations.
The whole is a coherent, multi-layered composition, in which the motif of nature, cultural memory and children's imagination is transformed into a clear, suggestive spatial form.