Mask and glove, cyanotypes on cotton (various formats) based on photographs, drawings, and archival materials, pattern and sewing: Berenika Pyza, 2025

The concept is inspired by an animistic approach to the natural environment and the symbol of the tree of life. The Spirit of Plants and Fungi is a figure representing the kingdom of plants and fungi, along with the wealth of connections between them. It is also a performative vision of the Tree of Life—a cultural model showing the eternal rebirth of nature in the form of a tree (drawing on the four elements: its roots used the earth and water, and its trunk and crown used the air and sunlight).

The work was made using the cyanotype technique. Designing and executing spatial forms in cyanotype is a multi-element and very labor-intensive process.

The work was based on research: an analysis of representations and meanings of the tree of life motif in different cultures and the book Dictionary of Stereotypes and Folk Symbols. 

The Mask

The figure consists of an unusually shaped mask with an elongated strip with a widened end and a glove with a wide and long sleeve. These elements are covered with various graphic motifs (original and archival) and photographs that I took in protected areas of Poland between 2022 and 2025. 

The mask with an elongated belt directly refers to the form of a tree - the bottom ends with roots, the top grows into a symbolic tree crown, passing into the clouds. The roots of the mask grow into the ground, the branches blend into the sky - connecting both zones into one.

The Glove

The fingers of the glove are covered with ornamental plant patterns inspired by medieval decorations. The back of the hand is covered with a mandorla radiating like the sun with mycelium roots. The inside of the glove shows a tree with roots that grow upwards and immediately transform into branches.

Site-specific artwork/performance for nature

The concept was completed with a series of digital photographs taken in the Bobrownia Nature Reserve in the Sierakowski Landscape Park and in the Knyszyn Forest Landscape Park. 

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The work was created during an artistic residency at Galeria Centrala in Poznań. 

The project received funding from the European Union under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NextGenerationEU).