About me(English)

Curriculum Vitae

My artistic journey and my life began in 1969 on Christmas morning in Munich (Germany). My maternal family has produced several artists. Both my grandmother and my mother were both artistically inclined. The grandmother would have liked to become a dancer, but her father forbade her to do so. My mother had a great talent for painting. Unlike her brother, who studied art, she was not able to realize herself in this direction.

However, my sister and I were supported by my mother to the best of our abilities. As soon as we could hold pencils in our hands, we painted paper after paper. My mother kept each of these small works of art carefully and noted our explanations and interpretations on the backs. This great appreciation of my art still resonates within me today.

Until the age of 20 I was convinced that I could do “something” with art in my life. But as life goes, it turned out differently than expected. With the early death of my mother and the move to Switzerland, the focus suddenly shifted to earning money, so at the age of 20 I decided to work as a nurse.

For many years I always had painting in mind but did not dare to invest time because I was worried that I would not be good enough without formal training.

In my early thirties, with a small child at home, I felt that I had to give my creativity an outlet so that I would not choke on it.

I started painting with acrylic and continued my education in various courses and techniques at the “Schule für Gestaltung” (Bern). See below

In 2011 I discovered the Hamburg artist Astrid Volquardsen and pastel chalks. In 3 pastel courses, which I attended with her, I learned the basics about pastels. Since then I have been addicted to pigments and dive deeper and deeper into the fascinating world of pure colours.

Since 2016 I have been taking part in exhibitions (see list of exhibitions below) and selling my works to collectors in Switzerland and Germany.

Artistic training

Scientific drawing, School of Design Bern

  • Nude drawing, School of Design Berne
  • Old masters – egg tempera technique, Schule für Gestaltung
  • Book illustration with Maya Delaquis (http://www.mayadelaquis.ch/), SfGB
  • Digital photography and old photo techniques with Simon Stähli 2013/14, SfGB
  • Free pastel painting with Astrid Volquardsen, Hamburg (https://www.pastellbilder.de) 2012, 2013 and 2017

Mitgliedschaften

Awards

  • April 2022 Shortlist exhibition “Make your mark”, Southestern Pastel Society
  • April 2022 4th place for “113 currants”, Dakota Pastels 1st Quarter (judge: Karen Marguelis)
  • Jan. 2022 Honorable Mention “Get dusty” Pastel Guild of Europe for “Sommerflieder”
  • Dec. 2021, Bronze Award “Sommerflieder”, Camelback Gallery “My best work of 2021”
  • Juni 2021, Honorable Mention “Sommerflieder”, Dakota Pastels 2nd Quarter (Judge: Marla Baggetta) https://www.dakotapastels.com/
  • März 2021 Silver Award, Online-competition “Shades of green” for “Apfel”, http://www.camelbackgallery.com
  • Feb 2021 2nd place, 3rd Online-Competition for “abundance” http://www.pasit-pastellisti.com
  • Sept 2020 finalist award Online-Competition “Shades of red” for “red in 3 variations”, http://www.camelbackgallery.com
  • July 2020 finalist award Online-Competition “food frenzy” for “epiphany”, http://www.camelbackgallery.com
  • July 2020 merrit award Online-Competition “food frenzy” for “abundance”, http://www.camelbackgallery.com

Expositions

to the exhibitions click here

Artist statement

I am a realist!

This does not only concern my self-image as an artist, but also as a human being. I like to look closely and details capture me. Light and shadow on a leaf, the fractal patterns of Romanesco or the strange architecture of a dragonfly.

My paintings are meditations on the moment, which is the only thing we truly possess in this life. In every blossom, in every fruit, in every leaf, the whole world is contained, not only in a philosophical sense, but in a very realistic and concrete way, the basic building blocks of nature form me just like a strawberry.

The painting process itself is a meditation for me. Immersed in the smallest details, the painting disintegrates for me into areas of colour and tonal values and only with the step back does the big picture reveal itself. As in real life, the angle of view is decisive.

In the last year the topic “food” has attracted more and more my interest.

Food is essential. It affects every human being. What comes on a person’s table defines who he is and how he lived. If you know a person’s diet, you can most likely tell what his or her state of health, financial situation and where his or her home is. A person’s menu says more about him than a passport.

Food is identity and connects. It connects you with other people who come from the same imprinting landscape. One shares a preference for certain dishes, one celebrates together with dishes that are known to all.

Food is political. In a world in which 11% of people are still hungry and at the same time in industrialised countries overweight has become a widespread disease, nutrition is not a neutral issue.

Food is climate-relevant. Approximately 30% of global CO2 emissions are caused by the production and transport of our food. And so what secures our survival, namely our food, also questions our survival.

And food inspires me. I love planting, harvesting, preserving and cooking. The artistic examination of food is only a continuation of my everyday life. Most of the reference photos of flowers are from my garden or from the nearby meadows. Many of the fruits, vegetables and flowers shown are from my own cultivation.

The 4 paintings I painted last year show the abundance of food we enjoy here in one of the richest nations in the world. And already the selection of fruits and vegetables presented me with a decision: should I buy the fruits that I like best visually or should I buy according to the same criteria that I use for my weekly shopping? Regional, seasonal, organic and fair trade? But there are such beautiful imported fruits! Can I break this rule for a painting?

My 4 paintings are in the tradition of still lifes, but not in the classical sense. Already the top view of the scene, instead of a side view, shifts the perspective. My still lifes are patterns, whose arrangement I plan carefully. The preparation with the actual fruits, the photographing and the editing on the computer take a lot of time. In the end, a painting always results from many individual photographs which I combine.

The picture series has developed from experiments with classical still lifes. I have a special preference for so-called “darkfood photography”, which shows food in very dark, atmospheric settings. My two paintings “time fold 1” and “time fold 2” are on the one hand classic still lifes and on the other hand they tell a story that takes place outside the painting. They tell of moments in which enjoyment and being together with other people fades out the world for a timeless moment.

This is exactly the subject I was discussing with an artist friend of mine on the occasion of the exhibition of these two paintings, when the idea of the paintings filled with fruits and flowers suddenly came to my mind like an inspiration. The kiss of the muses came unexpectedly, but I welcomed it with open arms.

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