Elena Terentieva

Elia Tera (Elena Terentieva) is a Switzerland-based artist working primarily in soft pastel. Her practice explores emotion, inner states and the intangible qualities of nature, using the visible world as a means of expressing what cannot always be seen or articulated directly.
She does not begin with a subject, but with an idea, a feeling or a word. Nature provides the imagery, while colour, light, atmosphere, composition and movement become tools for transforming it. A mountain can become an expression of permanence, a wave — energy, a flower — vulnerability.
Rather than simply reproducing the appearance of nature, Tera seeks to capture its emotional presence — the atmosphere, tension and state contained within a moment. Each painting becomes an investigation into the relationship between the visible world and human experience.
For Elia, painting is an ongoing search for meaning, beauty and the essence hidden within the subject.

Moldova State University, Moldova Diploma in International Relations
Moldova State University, Moldova Diploma in Finance — part-time studies
Artmania Art School, Kursk, Russia
Private studies in Drawing & Painting — 2013–2014
Creative Club “Pro Pastel” — Elena Tatkina 2024´-2026
Long-term artistic development and studio practice
Professional Development in Soft Pastel 2020–present
International Plein-Air Workshop — Olga Abramova Alicante, Spain — February 2026
International Plein-Air Workshop — Olga Abramova Umbria, Italy — November 2025
International Plein-Air Workshop — Irina Klimova Málaga, Spain — April 2025
International Plein-Air Workshop — Irina Klimova Tuscany, Italy — June 2024

Breath of Nature Solo Exhibition, Artcave Zurich Gallery, Zurich, Switzerland — September 2021
ARTMUC Munich, Germany — May 2022
Ambientarti IV — Hubart Gallery, Milan, Italy — June 2023
Winner of the exhibition with the artwork “Koi”; awarded the official exhibition diploma.
Art & Fashion Week Passepartout Gallery, Milan, Italy — September 2023
Art International Zurich / 25th Contemporary Art Fair Zurich, Switzerland — October 2023
Jenseits von Formen Kunst Zürich Süd, Adliswil, Switzerland — June 2025
Main gallery exhibition; experimental large-format mixed-media work combining acrylic and pastel.
Träume in Pastell / Dreams in Pastel Founder, Curator & Lead Organiser — Kunst Zürich Süd, Adliswil, Switzerland | 5–29 August 2026