Von Rydingsvard is the daughter of a Polish couple who were deported to a forced labour camp in Germany during World War II.
Born in Germany in 1942, she emigrated to the United States eight years later with her family and has lived and worked there since.
At a ceremony in Warsaw on Thursday, Polish Culture Minister Piotr Gliński thanked von Rydingsvard for carrying Poland in her heart all those years.
“Even though the United States became your home and it is there that you have achieved your greatest successes, you always mention your links with Poland, and the spirit of the folk art of Poland’s Tatra foothills is present in your sculptures," Gliński said as he handed the Gloria Artis Medal of Cultural Merit to von Rydingsvard on Thursday.
"In this way you highlight those close bonds between our nations, becoming an ambassador of Polish culture in the States and elsewhere in the world,” Gliński added.
Polish Culture Minister Piotr Gliński. Photo: PAP/Albert Zawada
Von Rydingsvard said she has never forgotten about the country of her parents.
“My links with Poland and my Polish soul have led me to give Polish titles to every second sculpture of mine," she said. "This serves to maintain my connection with Poland and my close bond with Poland and the Polish people."
On Saturday, von Rydingsvard is scheduled to attend the opening of a retrospective exhibition of her work at the Centre of Polish Sculpture in Orońsko, some 110 kilometers south of the Polish capital Warsaw.
The exhibition will feature 12 sculptures made from cedar wood, one using animal intestines, and one in polyurethane resin, in addition to 11 drawings and an installation created from ready-made objects.
From Orońsko, the exhibition will go to Warsaw and Kraków in southern Poland.
(mk/gs)