Sculpture "Grande Toscano "
Paris
Created in 1981, the sculpture 'Grande Toscano' by Polish artist Igor Mitoraj (1944-2014) depicts a fragment of a male body cut out of its entirety: half of the face, half of the torso, with the left arm cut off. A male head is embedded in the window frame, with a mutilated and fragmented female torso directly integrated into the sculpture below it.

The 'Grande Toscano' sculpture has been interpreted in multiple ways. Some scholars point to the triumph of beauty over injury and of the whole over the fragment expressed in the artist's work.

According to other interpretations, the 'Grande Toscano' sculpture is a tribute to Tuscany and its people, by referring in style to the Renaissance Tuscan sculptor Donatello.

It is also sometimes interpreted as a record of Igor's personal experience. Indeed, the female head is an image of Alexandra, Igor Mitoraj's favourite model, with whom the artist had a great friendship. The female head, alluding to the title of the sculpture, may also be a symbol of Tuscany itself, which Igor immediately fell in love with and which was very close to him.

The sculpture located on Bobrowiecka Street is the third copy of the Grande Toscano. The other two are located in Paris and Milan.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1981
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculpture "Testa addormentata "
London
A human head resting on its right side. The artist uses the bandaging motif known, among others, from the sculpture 'Eros bendato', but this time the head is bandaged almost completely. Only the characteristic mouth and part of the nose are visible.

The title of the sculpture means 'sleeping head', so Igor Mitoraj's emphasis is not on bandages, which are a symbol of enslavement, restraint, but on the metaphorical need to disconnect from everyday life, reality, to fall asleep, which can also mean poetry, a desire to immerse in metaphysics.

Although wrapped in bandages, i.e. somehow restrained, the head does not evoke negative feelings in the viewer, on the contrary. The mouth, in a delicate, barely suggested half-smile, as well as the peace and harmony emanating from the work, allow us to think that the titular head is immersed in a pleasant, undisturbed sleep.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1983
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculptures "Tyndareus "
Florence, Paris
A giant male head in classical profile, framed in a fragmentary formula typical of the artist, suggesting the damage of an ancient cast. Mitoraj's bronze sculptures, alluding in their form to ancient art and with their titles to classical culture and mythology or general Italian associations, adorn numerous public places and buildings around the world. Loved precisely because of these allusions, the traditional noble material, but also mostly valued for the high quality of their sculptural craftsmanship, they have become a recurring component of urban decoration. They are particularly often found in the vicinity of the cool office architecture of late modernism, with which they contrast with their apparent traditionalism. "The 'therapeutic' function of Mitoraj's sculptures in such places was brilliantly put by the American critic Donald Kuspit: "it is, as it were, a revival of the classical spirit in the midst of contemporary unspirituality and decline in spirit".

The vast esplanade spaces of Paris' new office district, La Défense, are home to many sculptures by well-known contemporary artists. In 2000, Mitoraj's bronze works were set up there at three different points in the district: 'Tindaro', 'Icarus and Icaria'. The originator of the initiative to set up the sculptures in La Défense was Parisian art dealer Jean-Gabriel Mitterand, whose JGM Gallery promotes and sells Mitoraj's works. According to Joanna Sitkowska-Bayle, 'the cast bronze silhouettes, flawed and mutilated, but not devoid of suggestiveness and strength, provide a kind of counterpoint to the perfectly delineated lines of the skyscrapers (...). (...) They rise against the smooth facades of the buildings like castaways who have come to settle in a strange land".

In Florence, in the Boboli Gardens near the Prato dei Castagni, there is another version of this sculpture in bronze, created in 1997. The work was donated by the artist to the Uffizi Gallery on the occasion of a monographic exhibition organised at the Boboli Gardens and the National Archaeological Museum in Florence.

Creation time: 1983, unveiling 2000
Compiled by: Prof. Andrzej Pieńkos

Monument "Torso alato "
Greve in Chianti
The 'Torso alato' monument by Polish sculptor Igor Mitoraj is located in Piazza Matteotti in Greve in Chianti, Italy. The object was created in 1985 and is made of bronze.

Time of creation: 1985

Sculpture "Grande Toscano "
Milan
The bronze sculpture 'Grande Toscano' by Igor Mitoraj is located in the square next to the church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Milan. It depicts the bust of a man, in place of his heart there is an opening, and in it is placed the face of an emotional muscle is the head of Alexandra, a long-time inspiration of the Polish artist. Directly below the man's breast, a fragmentary female torso is incorporated into the structure of the sculpture. The sculpture has two twin copies, one in Paris and the other in Poland. Igor Miroraj's Grande Toscano is the artist's tribute to Donatello, who is brimming in Piazza Del Carmine.

Creation time: 1986

Sculpture "Ikaria "
Paris, Syracuse
Icaria is a figure, belonging to a private gallery of heroes that do not exist in mythology but were invented by the artist, alongside Dea Roma (goddess of Rome) or the Gorgon hunters. Interpreted as the sister or wife of Icarus.

Ikaria is a female figure, headless, but possessing wings. She is shorter than Icarus, her right foot is held by a foreign hand. Attached to her left ankle is a female figure without arms, head or legs. In Ikaria's torso and wings, the artist has placed the foot of a cage and in it fragments of male heads, an example of the displacement often used by Igor within a single work. In the bosom of Ikaria is Medusa, or the mythological Gorgon. The sculpture's silhouette is dominated by huge wings.

In la Défense, Ikaria and Icarus are positioned opposite each other, dialoguing. Imprisoned in the modern district of Paris like Daedalus and Icarus on Crete by Minos, they symbolise the desires of its inhabitants to escape from the glassy, dehumanised architecture.

In Poland, another version of 'Icarus' (1996) is in a private collection.

It can also be found in Syracuse at the Castello Maniace.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1987
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculpture "Centurione "
Bamberg
The sculpture, placed on a pedestal, depicts an incomplete male head, as well as a fragment of the neck. The head is chipped off at an oblique angle, thus missing the right eye. What has been preserved, however, is the classic, harmoniously cut nose and the mouth, frozen in a slight smile, characteristic of Mitoraj's works.

The centurion of the title is a centurion, or centurion, which in ancient Rome was a lower officer, commander of a centuria, the smallest tactical unit of a legion, consisting of one hundred soldiers. Overwhelmingly, centurions were made up of the most experienced and distinguished soldiers, as it was they who bore the main responsibility for the course of the battle.

"Centurion" by Igor Mitoraj was wounded in battle, but nevertheless remains beautiful and intriguing. In line with the artist's idea that true beauty lies in our imperfections and wounds suffered, rather than in a perfect, flawless ideal.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1987
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculpture "Centauro "
Milan
The 'Centauro' statue was created in 1990 and is part of the fountain in the piazza Enzo Paci in Milan.

Creation time: 1990
More information: https: //www.polacywewloszech.com/2015/08/04/mediolan-pomnik-igora-mitoraja-centauro-odrestaurowany/

Sculpture "Per Adriano "
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
The sculpture dedicated to Emperor Hadrian depicts his beloved favourite, Antinous, who tragically died in the waters of the Nile. The face 'Per Adriano' (translated as 'Hadrian'), created in 1992, is located in the Plaza de la Isla de Madeira in the centre of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands. It belongs to a series of sculptures in which the author refers to antiquity while introducing touches of modernity.

Creation time: 1992

Sculpture 'Per Adriano '
The Hague
Igor Mitoraj's sculpture, 'Per Adriano' ('To Hadrian'), was created in 1993. The first version of this sculpture (1992) is located in the Plaza de la Madera in Santa del Cruz, Tenerife (since 1993). The young man's face is a personification of Antinous, the favourite and true love of Emperor Hadrian. The sculpture in The Hague has stood on a patio-plaza between public and residential buildings since 2001. Public and private (developer) funds were also used to purchase it.

Time of creation: 1993

Sculpture 'Light of the Moon '
The Hague
"Light of the Moon" by Igor Mitoraj in The Hague is a bronze sculpture covered with patina. It is located on top of a white dune. When it was placed there in 1994, it was to draw attention to the newly opened Beelden aan Zee museum below. The sculpture not only indicates the location, but also symbolises the museum's theme of modern and contemporary sculpture (international and national) with the motif of the human figure in all its aspects.

Creation time: 1994

Sculpture 'Centauro '
London
One of the artist's favourite sculptures. It took at least three years to create. It depicts a mythological centaur, half horse, half man, set on a pedestal on which the artist has placed fragments of busts with bandaged heads. In one of the busts a medallion with the face of a Gorgon. Beneath the Centaur's hooves a discarded, incomplete, headless and legless male torso with, possibly, Medusa's head ripped from the shield. The surface of the sculpture enriched with numerous elements of other sculptures, created in cages, e.g. a semi-profile of a face, reminiscent of an artist, or a female torso. On the male chest musculature, a fragment of tin armour with Medusa's head.

The artist himself said that in creating the Centaur he wanted to avoid at all costs the 19th century mannerism of the horseman or horse. Instead, he created a classical form with an inscribed contemporary feel.

The sculpture perfectly combines the characteristic features of Mitoraj's style. The mythical figure, a symbol of strength and unbridled bravery, is flawed, mutilated and incomplete in the Polish sculptor's depiction. The limp arms of the 'Centaur' are another popular motif in Mitoraj's work. The Centaur's torso also shows inspiration from Michelangelo, a fascination with antiquity, antiquity, mythology.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1994-1995
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculpture "Centaur "
Pietrasanta
The bronze statue of the Centaur, on a small stone plinth, stands somewhat hidden in a square at the back of the historic town hall building, near the cathedral. Typical of Mitoraj's work, it fits perfectly into the landscape of a Tuscan artists' town: a quasi-antique torso, a mythological centaur without arms, and bust fragments carved on the plinth, creating the suggestion of a collection of ancient finds.

The sculptor settled in Pietrasanta in the late 1980s, setting up a studio there. Located near Carrara, the town is famous for its stonemasons, specialising in marble work, as well as its excellent bronze foundries. Many artists from many countries have worked and lived here, including Fernando Botero, whose sculptures stand in the town near Mitoraj's work. The Polish sculptor also did painting decorations in the town hall and sculpting in one of the churches there. He took up the Centaur motif several times in his work, one version, for example, was exhibited in front of Krakow's Cloth Hall during Mitoraj's great retrospective in 2005, another was set up in 2003 in London's Canary Wharf district. In Milan, one was realised in 1991. 'Fountain of the Centaur'. The sculpture from Pietrasanta bears typical features of Mitoraj's 'conceptual classicism', operating with easy associations and formal paradoxes that undermine them. The seemingly antique bronze statue, referring to the stylistics of Greek sculptures of the classical period, is enriched (or impoverished) by various absurd insertions and cut-outs: a square hole with a human head in the side of the horse, a fragment resembling armour sliding off the pedestal, heads glued into the plinth, a lance standing despite the absence of the hands that should be holding it.

Time of creation: 1995
Compiled by: Prof. Andrzej Pieńkos

Sculpture "Eros bendato "
Pietrasanta
The sculpture depicts the gigantic male head of the Greek god of love, Eros, positioned on his right side, hollow in the middle.

The sculpture is characterised by the beauty and regularity of the facial features. The calm and dignified beauty emanating from the classical form is shattered by the unfinished, gouged out eye sockets, veiled and bandaged face. The appearance of bandages is a very frequently used motif in the artist's work.

The wounded head of Eros is sometimes interpreted as a symbol of suffering, as well as the collapse of modern civilisation. Its emptiness can encourage us to fill it with values and meaning.

The figure of Eros has been creatively transformed many times by Igor Mitoraj. The artist used various materials (bronze, travertine, white marble) for sculpting and covered their surfaces with different textures.

The most well-known 'Eros' sculptures include 'Eros bendato screpalato' or 'Eros alato con mano' (female torso with wings, a hand entwining it on the left).

Material: bronze
Creation time: 1999
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculpture "Ikaro" in La Défense district
Paris
Male figure on a pedestal. The weight of the body rests on the right leg, the left leg extended, giving the illusion of movement. The artist has achieved harmony in the sculpture through the inclination of the head, the clearly muscled legs and the antique torso of the protagonist, perfect in proportion. The contrast is created by the splintered back of the head and the lack of arms. Contrary to popular cultural imagery, Igor Mitoraj's Icarus is devoid of wings.

Interpreted as a metaphor for suffering, Icarus, situated in a modern banking and corporate district full of contemporary skyscrapers, may also symbolise man's desire to escape from mechanised everyday life and modernity towards freedom and carefreeness, and the desire to break free from the snares of routine and repetition.

As in the case of Eros, Igor Mitoraj was very fond of using the figure of Icarus, such as: Ikaro screpalato (1998), Ikaro (1998), Ikrao grezzo (1998), Ikaro (1999), Ikaro alato (2000).

The sculpture "Ikaro alato" can be seen in Warsaw (Żoliborz, 4 Wybrzeże Gdyńskie Street, in front of the Olympic Centre). "Ikaro alato", unlike the "Ikaro" sculpture, has one wing (right side).

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 1999
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Frescoes "Dawn" and "Twilight "
Pietrasanta
The two frescoes 'Dawn' and 'Dusk' by Igor Mitoraj were created in 2000. They are located in the Sala Consiliare in the Palazzo Communale town hall in Pietrasanta (exact address: piazza Matteotti 29, 55045 Pietrasanta). They depict bandaged silhouettes (two and three) shown up to the waist.

Time of creation: 2000

Sculpture "Tindaro Screpolato" in the Boboli Gardens
Florence
Igor Mitoraj's sculpture 'Tindaro Screpolato' is located in the Boboli Gardens in Florence, where it is the only contemporary work. Made of bronze. Set up in 2002 after an exhibition dedicated to the artist's work.

Creation time: before 2002

Sculpture "Eros "
Bamberg
The sculpture depicts the damaged head of Eros, the Greek god of love. It was made of bronze. It has been located in Bamberg since 2002.

Creation time: 2002

Sculpture "Dea Roma "
Rome
The artist sculpted the 'Goddess of Rome' in travertine from Tivoli. The goddess's head, which weighs over 100 kilograms, stood in Piazza Monte Grappa on 16 September 2003. The work is also a fountain - tears run down the goddess's face.

Creation time: 2003
More information: https: //www.voiceofrome.com/2018/03/06/igor-mitoraj-i-jego-dea-roma-w-holdzie-wiecznemu-miastu/

Bas-relief "Angelic Gate "
Rome
The bas-relief, placed on the door of the Basilica of Our Lady of Angels and Martyrs, depicts two key moments in Christianity; the Annunciation and the Resurrection. It took the artist two years to work on the sculpture, dedicated to Karol Wojtyla.

The door, designed and made by Igor Mitoraj, consists of two wings, separated by narrow brick pillars with a brick niche in the middle. The flat surface of the door has been covered with a green and rust patina.

On the right wing of the relief, the artist has placed the figures of the archangel Gabriel and Mary, in the convention of antique statues. Mary wears a wet cloth clinging to her body, a reference to the Greek goddesses of the Hellenistic period and the 'wet robe' style then in use, exposing the beauty of the body.

The Archangel Gabriel has the torso of a Greek youth.

On the left wing of the door, Mitoraj places Christ, whose entire body is deeply pierced by a cross.

In the archivolt, six heads (witnesses, guards, martyrs). In the lower part of the wing, under the figure of Christ, other heads, some bandaged.

"The Angelic Gate" captures the beauty of antiquity, symbolically referring to Christianity.

Some scholars see in the 'Angelic Gate' a reference to an icon.

Material: bronze
Time of creation: 2006
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Relief "Annnciazione" above the gates of Chiesa di Sant'Agostino
Pietrasanta
The relief, placed in the archivolt above the gates of the Chiesa di Sant'Agostino, repeats the motifs and figures known from the 'Angelic Gate' of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels and Martyrs. On the left side of the relief, the artist places Mary in the guise of a Greek goddess of the Hellenistic period. Opposite her is Christ, portrayed as a Greek youth whose torso is pierced by a cross. Unlike in the Roman and Warsaw 'Gates of Angels', the angel, in this case the Archangel Gabriel, is a small, almost microscopic figure. He is located in the upper left part of the composition. His image has been reduced to a head with wings.

Material: bronze
Creation time: 2013
Compilation of information: Agnieszka Stabro

Sculptures in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels and Martyrs
Rome
The works of a Polish sculptor can be seen at Piazza della Repubblica in Rome. On the wings of the doors to the basilica we will see two sculptures in gilded bronze. Upon entering the basilica, to the right is a marble sculpture by the same artist. The sculpture 'Saint John the Baptist' depicts the beheaded head of John the Baptist, given on a tray at Herod's request.

The sculptures 'Centaur', 'Daedalus', 'Centurion' and 'Winged Icarus '
Pompeii
Among the ruins of the ancient city of Pompeii are four sculptures by Igor Mitoraj: "Centaur", "Daedalus", "Centurion" and "Winged Icarus". In 2016, an exhibition of 30 works by the artist was held here.

For more information: https: //www.polacywewloszech.com/2017/04/21/dedal-igora-mitoraja-pozostanie-na-zawsze-w-pompejach/ ; https://culture.pl/pl/galeria/igor-mitoraj-prace-galeri

'Fallen Angel' sculpture in the Square of Miracles
Pisa
Igor Mitoraj's sculpture 'Fallen Angel' is located in the Square of Miracles in Pisa, Italy. The work by the famous Polish artist was made of bronze. It depicts a winged male torso, placed without a pedestal on the grass.

Head of John the Baptist in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels and Martyrs
Rome
The Head of John the Baptist made by Igor Mitoraj is located in the Basilica of Our Lady of Angels and Martyrs in Rome. The sculpture is made of white stone, in Mitoraj's typical style.

Sculpture 'Icarus '
Syracuse
In the city of Syracuse in Sicily, Italy, there is a sculpture by Igor Mitoraj entitled. "Icarus." The work is made of bronze covered with patina. It depicts a winged, headless androgynous figure placed on a pedestal.

Sculpture "Daedalus "
Pompeii
Igor Mitoraj's sculpture 'Daedalus' in Pompeii. An exhibition of 30 works by the artist was held here in 2016.

Sculpture "Centauro "
Pompeii
Igor Mitoraj's bronze sculpture 'Centauro' is one of four works by the artist (alongside 'Daedalus', 'Centurion' and 'Winged Icarus') on display in Pompeii. 2016 saw an exhibition of his 30 works here.

Sculpture "Fall of Icarus "
Agrigento
A photo of the sculpture won in the Polonica Institute's competition 'Heritage without borders' in 2024.

Igor Mitoraj's sculptures such as 'The Fall of Icarus' refer to classical proportions - that which is lasting and timeless. They depict figures with ancient features, but damaged, as if they were relics of antiquity, brought out of oblivion. They conceal both beauty and undoubted tragedy, capable of evoking the collapse of great civilisations, but also of human ambitions. They take on particular significance, in a world where digital media reinforce the fragmentation of identity, which is split between work, family and other activities.

Ambition and the limits of human possibility
"The Fall of Icarus" is not just a tribute to an ancient myth, but a reflection on the human condition. Using the symbolism of the mythical Icarus, Mitoraj conveys a universal message about human aspirations, ambitions and the inevitable limitations that every human being must face. The figure of Icarus, symbolising both courage and pride, becomes in this context a metaphor for the human condition, which constantly balances between dreams of pushing the limits and the awareness of one's own limitations.

The story of Icarus, who in his ambition soared too high, becomes a story about the human desire to reach beyond what is possible, to transcend limits, both physical and mental. It is a fundamental characteristic of human nature - the drive for the unknown, the desire to explore new horizons, both literally and metaphorically. Icarus in mythology represents not only youthful idealism, but also carelessness and a lack of understanding of his own limitations, leading to his tragic downfall.

The sculpture from Agrigento depicts a fragmented, partially damaged human figure. This fragmentary nature represents both the ancient heritage and the fragility of human destiny, like the ruins of the ancient temples among which it is situated. In a certain perspective, this juxtaposition of harmony and decay - beauty and destruction - gives Mitoraj's work a metaphysical dimension; the figure, stripped of its original context, aspires to become a fragment of something larger that no longer exists.

Pride and Punishment
Mitoraj's sculpture alludes to the concept of hybris, or hubris, which in ancient Greece often led to doom. Icarus, ignoring the warnings of his father Daedalus, soared too high, where the hot rays of the sun melted the wax of his wings. It is a story that teaches about the consequences of disobedience to natural laws and how hubris can lead to tragic consequences.

In the context of the human condition, hubris is not only about excessive ambition, but also about the desire to control the world around us. Modern man, armed with technology and science, is increasingly faced with challenges that are beyond his capabilities. However, it is Mitoraj's question of whether man, like Icarus, is sometimes overconfident, trying to soar too high, disregarding the natural limits and consequences of his actions.

Sculpture in the Valley of the Temples - controversy
The location of the sculpture in the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento is no coincidence. It is one of the most impressive archaeological sites in the world, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It houses the monumental remains of ancient Greek temples that were dedicated to various gods. It was placed there in 2011, on the occasion of an exhibition of Igor Mitoraj's work, and then donated to the city, permanently (?) inscribed in its location, but decontextualising it visually. This change, which could have been explained by the temporary exhibition - as we can read in critical statements - becoming permanent, raises a certain concern as to its legitimacy. Hence the voices that have been appearing for years indicating that it should be moved to another location.

"The Fall of Icarus" can be read as a reminder of the fall of great civilisations, just like the ancient ruins in the midst of which the sculpture is placed. Like ancient Greece and, in part, Rome, whose temples and statues survive only as fragments of their former glory, Icarus becomes a symbol of what passes with time. However, there is also no shortage of voices saying that this monumentality, especially in this place, is overwhelming, reversing the order of the place, making the ancient ruins merely a background for the present. Critics of Mitoraj's sculptures emphasise that, although they cannot be denied artistic craftsmanship, beauty or perhaps just showy prettiness, they are primarily geared towards the spectacular. Particularly in the world of ancient ruins, they become 'garden dwarves', but stripped of their - in their own way charming - immediacy. They are accused of becoming more of an escape 'into meaning', somehow comfortable in their generality as a reflection on the human being rather than addressing issues of much greater relevance to the present day.

Compilation of information: Bartłomiej Gutowski