For three months in 2002 twelve enormous bronze statues by the renowned Polish sculptor Igor Mitoraj ( 1944-2014) graced the streets of Lugano. How happy we are that a local bank purchased one of them as a gift to the city and it continues to bring playful joy to residents and tourists alike! This sculpture is so big and tactile that it just beckons you to approach it and explore it. Even from the inside!
This huge sculpture invites you to draw close and examine it. I took some tourists to check it out a few weeks ago!
I think that I managed to get inside Eros's head! Maybe only this way will I understand why he is covered in bandages!
Tourists will be tourists and kids will be kids. My tourist friends had Lots of fun!
Eros Bendato
This somewhat eerie bandaged and severed head is called Eros Bendato which translates as Eros Bound. The sculpture depicts a fragment of an ancient monument to Eros, the Greek god of love and desire. There are different ideas as to the meaning behind the bandages that surround the statues eyes and mouth. Some explain that love is blind while others feel that desires and ideas have been imprisoned.
Eros Bendato Around The World
One of the really cool things about this piece of gigantic art is that variations of it can be found all over the world! here I present some of them:
Eros Bendato in Vancouver, Canada. Similar yet so different! Do you like all of the cracks? I do! Photo Credit
Eros Bendato Krakow, Poland. This one seems to be identical to the one that graces Lugano! Photo credit.
Eros Bendato St. Louis ,Missouri U.S.A. Photo credit.
Another one in Rome! Photo credit
Would You Like to See Other Sculptures by This Artist?
If you would like to explore more of the work of Igor Mitoraj here are 185 of his best works!
They are both weird and wonderful!
What do You Think of This Sculpture by Igor Mitoraj?
- Do you find it fascinating, beautiful or eerie?
- Would you like to climb inside of it?
- Would it make you lose your head?
I hope that you enjoyed this article about Eros Bendati by Igor Mitoraj!
Until next time,