Claudia TERSTAPPEN
30 July to 23 August 2008
Claudia Terstappen studied German Literature and Philosophy
at the
Heinrich Heine University and Sculpture and Photography at the Art Academy
in Duesseldorf, Germany. As a practicing artist of more than 20 years
standing, she has an impressive string of international exhibitions, awards
and publications to her name. She has lived and worked in Germany, Great
Britain, Spain and the US. Her work is held in many international collections,
including the Museum of Fine Art Houston,Texas, USA; the Osaka Prefectual
Government, Japan and the Fundación Coca Cola, Spain.
Her artistic work focuses on the interrelationship between religion, superstition and science in relation to place, culture and time. Work and travel have always been joint elements in her life and she draws her inspiration from travels to countries where there are strong traces of ancient and modern belief systems as represented by mythical stories, holy landscapes and spiritual beliefs. Some of these countries have included Brazil, Colombia, Canada, the US, Iceland and Spain.
In 2002 her artistic work brought her to Australia. After traveling in NSW, Central Australia and Queensland she spent an extended period in Kakadu and Arnhemland in the Top End. The dramatic changes in the landscape from the wet to the dry season and her growing interest in wildlife saw her return to these remote areas from Europe many times.
Claudia Terstappen has been a lecturer at many internationally recognized universities, including The Slade School of Fine Art, Goldsmith College in London as well as Maryland University and Massachusetts College of Art, Boston. For ten years she directed Southampton Universities Postgraduate program in Barcelona. In 2004 she was appointed to Monash University as the only studio-based Professor of Fine Arts in a Victorian university.
More recently she was invited to take a leading role in several international research projects. One of these, “Wunderforschung” was a major project in collaboration with the Museum of Natural History / Humboldt University and the Max Planck Institute in Berlin, and explored ‘Miracles’ from the different perspectives of scientists, historians and artists.
Claudia Terstappen
Feb 2008
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |