Igor Mikoda

Igor Mikoda serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Arts in Poznań within the Faculty of Sculpture and Spatial Actions, concurrently holding a position in the Graphic Arts Program at Collegium da Vinci in Poznań. His academic leadership includes directing the Student Biennial of Small Sculptural Forms since 2008, co-organizing the Pygmalion Brigade Sculptural Happening, and serving as Head of the Department of Sculpture at the Faculty of Religious Art and Design since 2016. From 2020-2024, he was deputy dean of the Faculty of Sculpture at UAP. Born in Lubartów in 1982, he began formal art training at the State Secondary School of Fine Arts in Lublin in 1997.

His educational milestones include:

• 1997-2002: Diploma in Woodcarving from State Secondary School of Fine Arts in Lublin
• 2002-2008: Graduated with distinction in Sculpture and Drawing from the Faculty of Sculpture and Spatial Actions at Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań (studios of Prof. Józef Petruk and Prof. Wiesław Koronowski)
• 2013: PhD in Fine Arts (Artistic Discipline) from University of Arts in Poznań

Mikoda's research centers on the synthesis of sculpture and drawing through "mystical realism," merging traditional techniques with digital tools (3D modeling, virtual reality) to explore spatial illusions and symbolic narratives inspired by mythology, folklore, and fantasy. He actively challenges excessive aestheticization to reveal new dimensional relationships, emphasizing that art serves as self-definition and environmental dialogue where viewers become participants rather than passive recipients. Drawing functions as both conceptual blueprint and integral spatial component across his sculptural practice, with materiality and contextual awareness forming core methodological pillars.

His artistic output (2023-2025) demonstrates consistent evolution in mixed-media spatial compositions, particularly through the PHANTOM series and WILDFIELDS triptych. These works reflect his theoretical framework by utilizing digital techniques to materialize "modern space" while embedding surrealist references to childhood memories and Eastern Borderlands atmospheres. The synthesis of graphic textures within sculptural forms creates layered spatial experiences that align with his philosophy of cross-disciplinary communication and intellectual content transmission.

Mikoda's academic mentoring manifests through the Student Biennial of Small Sculptural Forms and Pygmalion Brigade project, fostering student engagement in sculptural experimentation. Institutional support is evident in the Synthesis of Arts Festival (2017 fifth edition), which he coordinated for UAP with funding from the Marshal's Office of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and Bydgoszcz City Council. No personal grants are explicitly detailed.

He operates within collaborative frameworks including the Pygmalion Brigade team and Synthesis of Arts Festival partnership, connecting UAP with the University of Technology and Life Sciences in Bydgoszcz and Khmelnytskyi National University in Ukraine. These initiatives emphasize multidisciplinary integration across design, music, and visual arts to explore context-driven artistic communication and functional creativity.