Blue Madonna

Stanisław Seta (born in 1941) has lived in the coastal town of Dźwirzyno since 1957. He sculpts works on biblical, mythological and marine themes. ‘Blue Madonna’ is a sculpture referring to the traditional folk sculpture, originating from the sacral art of different epochs. In the past, villagers needed patron saints to guard their families and possessions in all life situations. Images of saints were in household altars, in chapels at the crossroads or river crossings. They shared typical workshop features: polychrome, specific attributes of the saints, oversized heads and hands of the figures, framed in a static, poorly fragmented and uncomplicated representation. Stanisław Seta characterises the sculpted figure unequivocally: the blue cloak and the unnaturally large heart represent the Sacred Heart of the Virgin Mary. The image is a symbol of motherly love for every human being. Standard features: entire mass, static, strongly compact, lack of body proportions - an elongated torso and a large head with unnaturally large eyes, as well as contrasting colours - are related to traditional folk sculpture.

Iwona Karwowska