Ruta Jusionyte - The Woman and the Minotaur

The Woman and the Minotaur – Ruta Jusionyte

A nude woman sits on the lap of an attentive minotaur. The mythical creature tenderly embraces its companion, creating a scene where monstrosity transforms into gentleness.

This sculpture stages the unlikely pairing of a woman and a minotaur. With its powerful legs and bovine head, the creature becomes almost like an armchair for the young woman resting against him. The modelling reveals the texture of the clay and the intimacy shared between the two figures. Through these hybrids, Jusionyte plays with ancient myths: the minotaur, traditionally a terrifying creature, becomes here the symbol of discreet tenderness. The monster’s gaze brushes against the woman’s breast, a gesture of delicate sensuality.

The artist draws on mythology to explore romantic relationships and the fusion of opposites. Her reflection on love and myth suggests that the invisible bonds between beings go far beyond simple reproduction, and that animals participate in these connections just as much as humans do. The scene recalls the story of Eros and Psyche, where the hybrid figure conceals a god of love. A subtle sense of humour also emerges from the improbable position of the couple: who, in fact, is supporting whom?

Over the years, Ruta Jusionyte has developed an immediately recognisable body of work at the crossroads of Neo-Expressionism, Symbolist Romanticism, and Magical Realism. Born in Lithuania in 1978, she now lives and works in France and has established herself as a significant figure on the contemporary European art scene, blending expressionist intensity with symbolic romanticism.

Her work explores the relationships between humans and animals. Her hybrid sculptures reveal a fascination with fragility and strength, innocence and bestiality, always infused with a discreet touch of irony.

Winner of the Académie des Beaux-Arts Prize in 2019, Ruta Jusionyte is now highly sought after by collectors drawn to deeply embodied painting and sculpture, where emotion and visual intensity meet.