"Tree" Painting

In a classic way, my love for art developed very early on and I started painting in oil or drawing with pencil or charcoal as a child. My curiosity and joy of creativity were awakened. After training in media technology, I decided to study at the Mannheim Art Academy. But after a year I realized that my second passion, the love for antique things, especially old buildings, was stronger and I decided to study conservation-restoration. I count this time as one of the most beautiful and interesting times of my life. Afterwards I also worked as a freelance restorer. During my time as a restorer I was able to see a lot, art from antiquity, through the Middle Ages to the Wilhelminian era. Each era had its own magic and materiality that I could capture with my eyes and feel with my hands. At least I was fascinated and inspired every day. This inspiration and fascination contributed to my wanting to pursue my own art. The past and its retrospective should remain a theme in my artworks. Nature is particularly close to my heart because you can learn the most from it. The more we realize how unique and wonderful this nature is, the more humble we feel. In today's narcissistic times, humility is something of a luxury. It’s not something that “takes us further.” On the contrary, it even pushes us further to ignore nature and live dissolutely and carelessly. And when we want to take a break from this excessive world, we go to the forest to “recharge our batteries” and “ground ourselves”. And there we often only perceive nature superficially, as a snapshot. Taking photos gives us the opportunity to pause, capture the moment, reflect on it and create new memories. Old slides and family photos are also my choice of motifs. Integrity at work has always been important to me. That's why it's important to me as an artist to use environmentally friendly materials, which is not easy in painting. You want to give free rein to your expression. I make most of my painting materials myself, both oil paints and watercolors, pastels and primers. It is important to me not to use toxic pigments, e.g. no cadmium or lead pigments. I want to exploit the repertoire of earth pigments and am constantly looking for exciting, environmentally friendly pigments.