2023
digital work
I researched the harmony between the human and animal worlds. I have always felt a great bond with animals, sometimes even greater than with people, and it was very natural for me to combine the qualities of both worlds and thus create a contrast and, consequently, some interest for the viewer.
I wanted to create subjects with their own narrative and, hopefully, a touch of humor. The works are colorful, symbolism appears and the composition is dynamic, their main purpose is to tell a short story that will take the viewer away from stressful everyday life, at least for a moment.
Human-animal hybrids are not a new concept. Anthropomorphism has always been present as a literary technique in storytelling. It means humanizing or transferring human characteristics to other beings, objects, phenomena or abstract concepts.
Many cultures have developed a tradition of fables featuring anthropomorphic animals that illustrate certain human characteristics. The term is a combination of the Greek words ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos) – “man” and μορφή (morphē) – “form”. It is possible to define them as partially human hybrids (such as mermaids or centaurs).
“Theriocephaly” (from Greek θηρίον therion ‘beast’ and κεφαλή kefalí ‘head’) is the anthropomorphic condition or characteristic of an animal head with a body that is mostly or entirely human-looking – a term often used to refer to depictions of deities or how otherwise specially abled individuals.
For example, many of the gods and goddesses worshiped by the ancient Egyptians were commonly depicted as theriocephalic, such as the falcon-headed Horus, the jackal-headed Anubis, and the lion-headed Sekmet.
