Mario Dilitz, b.1973, is an Austrian sculptor. He was born and still resides in Axams, Tyrol. Dilitz was not always a sculptor but was previously a freestyle skier successfully taking part in both the European and World Cup championships. As a child however, Dilitz spent a lot of his time in his father’s carving workshop and even did some wood carving himself. At the age of 25 Dilitz gave up competitive skiing for the chisel, enrolling himself in a specialist school of wood sculpture in 1998 and attending additional workshops. His first solo exhibition took place in 2010 in Munich and ever since he has had a solo exhibition every year in a major European city, his most recent being at the Sladmore Gallery in 2022.
Dilitz focuses on the human figure, inspired by human evolution and decay. His figures stand alone and neutral, made of native Austrian wood and bronze. Dilitz does not work with models and reflects as little of his subjects into the final piece as possible. The neutrality that Dilitz creates in the piece is to provide the viewer with space for their own projections, “almost a mirror” as Dilitz describes it. He prefers not to provide us with a narrative or story behind his sculptures. He strives for beauty and perfection, as many have pointed out, this aesthetic polarises with the contemporary issues apparent in his work.