Enjoy life, think positive, precious the big as well as the small moments.
Tell us about You - your philosophy and the experience in visual arts
As a child I loved to draw and liked to be creative. I almost was born with a pencil in my hand.
I knew I wanted to do something related to arts. I have graduated from Graphic Design in Darmstadt , Germany and then worked for different advertising agencies in Germany , USA and Switzerland .
I stopped working in agencies after becoming a mother, and after a short time of being self employed I decided to quit work until my children grew older. Because of my children (4 and 6 years old) I can go through childhood again and I can enjoy the world of fantasy and fairy tails. I like to look at childrens books and let them inspire me. „Where the wild things are“, from Maurice Sendak is a favourite book of all of us. Through the children books I rediscovered the love to illustration again.
As a professional graphic art designer I often had to make compromises for the clients. There were a lot of rules in visual communication and I often felt that I could not express my whole creativity. Now I enjoy creating art that does not explain itself from the beginning. My images have a dreamlike and surreal quality. They speak from inner feelings which we often hide in our daily life.
What are your greatest inspirations?
My inspirations are: Fantasy, children stories, medieval, Jugendstil, Folklore and Surrealism. I am inspired by the work of Nicoletta Ceccoli, Kelly Rae Roberts, Sabrina Ward Harrison, Olaf Hajek, Maggie Taylor, Natalie Shau, Colette Calascione and Nazario Graziano.
Well, there are so many great artists around!
How did you gain so much knowledge in this area?
As a graphic art designer I worked a lot with digital images.
What creative mediums do you prefer the most and why?
My images are all digital made. I collect old images and illustrations and put them new together in Photoshop. The working process is based on combining and the division of photographs, with removing, filling and retouch. Using digital medium I have far more creative possibilities and I can work much faster then on the Canvas. Perhaps, my skills have been formed during the long years of working in front of my computer. Thanks to all that I can create my art best in digital.
Your art world is…
My art world is Otto Dix, Frida Kahlo, Picasso, Gustav Klimt, Magritte and Boticelli.
(Interview for a group host on Redbubble in 2011)
(Interview for a group host on Redbubble in 2011)
Fantastique!!! J'aimerais vous lire en français...
AntwortenLöschenJ'aime beaucoup ce que vous faites.
AntwortenLöschenJe viens de lire ce que vous révélez dans "about me " et ce que j'y ai découvert ne m'a guère étonnée notamment en ce qui concerne vos sources d'inspiration : j'avais deviné un certain nombre d'entre elles.
Me fasciné con tu obra y me tomé la libertad de hacer y subir un video a youtube. Si tienes algún inconveniente házmelo saber y de inmediato lo retiro. Saludos: Consuelo Larralde
AntwortenLöschenDear Consuelo!
LöschenThanks for your video, I like it very much and I love the song from Celine Dion! Cheers Catrin
Hi there! I absolutely LOVE your work and I just featured it on my blog! Here is the link if you want to take a look...http://graceandivy.wordpress.com/2013/06/06/art-to-adore-catrin-welz-stein/
AntwortenLöschenKeep up the beautiful work! You are an inspiration!
Best wishes,
Ivy
Dear Ivy,
AntwortenLöschenThank you for your nice words! I'm very honored to be featured on your blog, thank you!
All the best,
Catrin
Bonjour,
AntwortenLöschenI love your work.
I put any of your pictures regularly on Google+ :
http://m1p.fr/vLu
and I posted this video on Youtube :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sk0004wSxhE
Gérard Hermann
Dear Ms. Stein,
AntwortenLöschenDo you do commissioned work? And if so, how might I go about presenting a project to you for your consideration?
Like the rest of the world it seems....I too, have fallen in LOVE with what your vision of the world! Both seen and unseen!
I look forward to hearing from you and hope that you are enjoying a wonderful summer!
Sincerely,
Connie Horner
chorner01@gmail.com
Hi Catrin...
AntwortenLöschenPlease check email. Trying to reach you. Maybe in spam folder? Once again, in looking over your site here, I am totally blown away by your work!
I look forward to hearing from you ....
Sincerely,
Connie Horner
chorner01@gmail.com
Hello Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenI am a poet-blogger and I have used one of your images to accompany a poem I wrote. I have correctly attributed the artwork to your name and provided a link back to your Redbubble page, but if you would like me to remove the image, please email me at theimaginarygarden@gmail.com.
Here is the link to my site: http://kerryoconnorpoems.blogspot.com/2013/09/another-spring.html
Sincerely
Kerry O'Connor
And what a delightful world it is ... found you at dVerse
AntwortenLöschenThank you Liz, I read your wonderful poem "The Bear"!
LöschenAll the best to you,
Catrin
Hi Catrin!!!
AntwortenLöschenMy name is Alejandra. I'm mexican. Today see your art and I love it. I feel love, freedoom, light, beauty, faith, peace!!!
One of your images put in my facebook. Is this possible?
Blessings!!!
Alejandra Camacho
Thank you Alejandra! Yes, you can post an image on your facebook page, please link it to my blog!
LöschenThank you & all the best,
Catrin
Hi Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenYour vision lives in the liminal - so beautiful it dances through my heart and mind. I have fallen in love your piece ' The Tea Cup' because I am a tea mistress and work with tea ceremony. I would love to put the image on my website. Would that be ok?
www.teamistress.com
Warmth,
Jen
Dear Jen,
Löschenthanks for your interest in the "The Tea Cup"! If you send me your email address, I can give you more information regarding your request.
All the best,
Catrin
Dearest Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenI would like to create a story about one of your art pieces and post it on my tiny blog: www.shorteststoriesby.me
It would either be "Clouds in her Coffee" or "the Teacup". Depending on which one inspires me most... :) Of course I link you...
sample story about a piece by Raymond Saá:
http://shorteststoriesby.me/2014/02/13/the-sediment-die-ablagerung/
thank you,
yours sincerely,
Louisa Juli
Liebe Louisa!
LöschenDas ist eine sehr schöne Idee und ich bin sehr gespannt, zu welcher Geschichte Sie die Bilder inspirieren werden!
Herzliche Gruesse
Catrin
Liebe Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenhier ist die Geschichte, ein Mini-Märchen inspiriert von dem Kunstwerk "clouds in her coffee".
Ich hoffe Sie gefällt Ihnen.
Dear everyone,
the story is also in English.
http://shorteststoriesby.me/2014/02/23/mrs-cloud-frau-wolke/
thank you,
Louisa Juli
Very sweet, I like it!
LöschenVielen Dank Louisa, ich wünsche Ihnen alles Gute für die Zukunft!
Hey Catrin, I absolutely love your work! I am an aspiring artist and your work inspires me. It amazes me. What you do is breathtaking. I would love to know where you learnt graphic design, because I want to myself pursue it! By the way kudos on your amazing artwork, keep it up!
AntwortenLöschenHi!
LöschenThanks for your nice words :) I studied Graphic Design in Darmstadt, Germany. It was a good school, but I learned my main skills through my work and my working with Photoshop.
All the best to you,
Catrin
Hello! I was interested in your Sunshine Tattoo Canvas 30x40 and Chasing The Moon Canvas 30x40 on Fab.com but they are no longer available. Is there another place I can get these? Thank you!
AntwortenLöschenHI KC! Please go to Redbubble:
Löschenhttp://www.redbubble.com/people/catrinarno/works/8004261-chasing-the-moon?p=canvas-print
and:
http://www.redbubble.com/people/catrinarno/works/8999074-sunshine-tattoo?p=canvas-print
Thank you and have a great day!
Catrin
Liebe Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenich würde gerne eines Deiner tollen Bilder ("Silent night") auf Glas im Kontext eines Raumteilers in einer Wohnung aufbringen lassen. Leider kann ich das Format, das ich für den Drucker benötige, nicht auf den von Dir genannten Quellen (siehe Links) beziehen. Könntest Du mich bitte direkt unter ckny(at)gmx(dot)net kontaktieren oder mir eine Kontaktmöglichkeit nennen, um nach Lösungsmöglichkeiten zu suchen? Ich würde wirklich gerne "Silent night" auf Glas gedruckt täglich in meiner Wohnung bewundern und würde mich daher sehr über ein rasches Feedback freuen.
Beste Grüße,
Christian
Dear Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenI am contacting you from an Italian publishing house. We would like to use one of your beautiful images as cover for one of our upcoming books.
If you are interested please write me so I can explain the project in more details.
Otherwise, would it be possible to purchase an high res version of your images online? If so, please let me know where.
Best,
Caterina
please email me at comunicazione@buponline.com
Catrin, I moderate an educational page on FB called Bad Art is Better Than NO Art! I am a practicing mixed media artist and educator. I'm collaborating with a teacher colleague to motivate high school students to have confidence and just MAKE ART even if they think they cannot. I would like to feature your work on the page. Feel free to come over and view the post and interact with the commentors there. Have a wonderful day.
AntwortenLöschenDear Geneva,
LöschenI see you posted my work on your page :) Thank you and good luck with your Blog!
Hi! I am the Lead Designer at Disney•Hyperion and I have a young adult book jacket project I think you would be great for. If you art interested, please contact me at marci.senders@disney.com.
AntwortenLöschenThanks!
Marci
Hello, I would love to hire you for an illustration assignment for Angels on Earth magazine.
AntwortenLöschenPlease email me if available and interested. dsnyder@guideposts.org
Thank you Catrin!
Doug
Dear Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenMy name is Elena and I’m a buyer for the Berlin-based, German online-retailer MONOQI. I really like your design and work and would love to find a way to feature it on our site. Please email me at elena@monoqi,de if you are interested in a collaboration.
Thanks you and best wishes,
Elena
Dear Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenMy name is Djoeke and I work for the Dutch magazine Happinez. Our editorial team fell in love with your artwork and we would like to publish it in our upcoming edition. Could you contact me at djoeke.kroonbergs@happinez.nl to explore the possibilities. Thank you.
Hope to hear from you soon and best regards,
Djoeke
Dear Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenI want to ask if it's possible for me to use "Homeward Bound" for brochures and a card
in relation to writing groups I plan to offer women in their 60s and 70s. I'm a psychotherapist
in private practice, website: joanfiset.com
Thanks,
Joan
Hi, we are looking for brilliant surreal artists to feature on our website as visual inspiration. We would like to feature some of your pieces and respectfully ask if that is okay. We would link to the URL of your choice. Just let us know if you are okay with that and where we should point our fans. This is our website: submarinelights.com
AntwortenLöschenHi Stephen and Meredith! Cool, thank you very much for featuring my work on your blog!All the best to you,
LöschenCatrin
I love so much your art and you imagination! You inspire me a lot!
AntwortenLöschenThank you Naru for your kind words. I feel honored :)
LöschenHi, I would like to inquire about selling your illustrations, please contact me on: stormyvintagestudio@gmail.com
AntwortenLöschenLook forward to hearing from you!
Thanks!
We are a graphic design studio from barcelona, and we would like to use your opera ilustrations for DVDs project cover. We have seen the ilustration of Turandot (Cinncitati Opera) and we liked pretty much. Could you make us a budget to make 40 covers? I dont mind if they are made or they need to be made. If you like to contact us please send an email to info@grafco.es
AntwortenLöschenHi Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenmy name is Paolo and with my wife Catia we are giving life to an activity of international wedding planner.
We saw your works published in internet: we love them!
We need an immage for our brand identity.
Our project is a cultural proposal. We need an image that is dreamlike but mostly expressing a cultural concept.
If you are interested we will give more informations.
We are sure that our idea can be very evocative for your imagination.
Thanks
Paolo Pegoraro
pegorpaolo@gmail.com
Oops, we are from North Italy, Padova.
AntwortenLöschenThanks.
Der Kommentar wurde von einem Blog-Administrator entfernt.
AntwortenLöschenI am familiar with you work and I was browsing on ebay and came across someone who I think is plagiarizing you. Here is the link http://www.ebay.com/itm/Surrealism-36x24-oil-painting-handpainted-on-canvas-a-boat-womans-face-a3261-/361480342345?hash=item5429e84b49:g:AaMAAOSwgyxWXbPx
AntwortenLöschenhello Catrin i have to talk about an artist and two of his works for an Art project in my school , since i like your works i'd like to talk about you. Can you give a short description of: Love is a Tango and The Flow i would appreciate it alot. thank you in advance.
AntwortenLöschenLove every single thing you create!
AntwortenLöschen"I have far more creative possibilities and I can work much faster then on the CanvasI"
AntwortenLöschenI like the work but the claim digital can surpass an oil painting does not stand. Unless we actually saw some of the work done in oils by you , your claim to surpass painting is flawed. Most of the work derives from painted sources as well as photographs. But essential the physical properties of paint extend the visual range. Yes it takes longer and more skill than digital.
Dear Breadon, sorry for my late reply and thank you for your thoughts, I really appreciate them!
LöschenWhat I said was from a very subjective point of view. How I work I think it works best in digital. I could not paint those images, I would not have the possibilities of collaging old and new, or collaging different mediums like oil painting and photographs together. The thought of combining different mediums together and make something new out of them is the essential part of my work.
Off course I admire handmade Artwork, it takes high skills to paint, a lot of patience and time. I did not have any intentions to degrade paintings!
If you want a bit more information about my work, please follow the link below.It is an interview I held 4 weeks ago.
http://www.lunarionuovo.it/intervista-catrin-welz-stein/
All my best,
Catrin
My daughter Emma and I love all your pictures so much. You manage to capture different aspects of the feminine spirit inside a moment of surreal beauty. The images you create are brilliant! Thank you so much. Would it be possible for Emma to use some of your images on the blog she is starting? She is 13, and aims to write about things she finds wonderful (landscapes, photography, drawing, her pet rabbit - those sorts of things), and things she finds difficult (mostly to do with school life). She is very responsible. Your images go perfectly with her character and personality. Would it be alright if she stated the images were yours and provided a link to your blog spot? Thank you.
AntwortenLöschenDear Indrani, thank you for your nice words!
LöschenYes, Emma can show some images of mine on her blog, thank you for asking! It would be nice if you could inform me when they are online, thank you!
I wish her all my best for her blog :)
Catrin
Thank you so much, you are very kind! I will definitely send you a link once her blog goes online. All the best, x
Löschenhi Catrin!
AntwortenLöscheni've been studying your work at school for the past couple of months and i can honestly tell you that i am in love. i was so inspired by your work that i used one of your pieces to inspire my end of year exam. my favourite piece of yours is 'the magic ribbon' because it is just so beautiful and captured exactly what i was looking for in a piece of art.
melissa (15)
Dear Melissa, thank you for your kind message! I'm very honored you chose my work for your studies at school and I wish you all the best for the future! Take care!
LöschenLiebe Frau Welz-Stein, ich bin zufälle auf eine Ihrer Arbeiten gestoßen und würde Ihnen gern ein paar Fragen die Rechte betreffend stellen. Aber ich finde keine Mailadresse von Ihnen und ich will auch nicht alles öffentlich machen. Können Sie mir denn Ihre Mailadresse geben? Mich finden Sie hier: www.jasminbehrouzi.com
AntwortenLöschenHello Catrin,
AntwortenLöschenI discovered your work by chance and I love it ! it's just tremendously impressive and original. Do you allow me to talk about your work and post your works on my site ? I'd love to !
Agnès
Dear Agnes, thank you for your nice words! Yes, you can post images of mine on your blog, please give me a notice when it is online, thanks!
LöschenSalut je suis Cica et j'ai 17 ans. Je ne sais pas , si tu connais le surrealist Salvador Dali, mais je trouve que tes arts ressembler son style beaucoup et j'adore tes peintures et les de lui . Ces sont lesquelles m'inspirer le plus. Merci pour exister et faire des trop belles peintures. Cica
AntwortenLöschenDear Cica, thank you for your nice words! I know Salvador Dali and I admire his art very much. He and Magritte have a lot of influence in my surreal work! Take care, Catrin
LöschenHello Catrin, we love your work. We are a small craft jewelry company and would be interested to know if you accept orders to create logos or corporate image designed exclusively. We would love to have you in our team and that you would design our logo, would it be possible? If you are interested, please contact us at this address: oniriahjoyas@gmail.com
AntwortenLöschenThank you very much!!
Greetings!!!
Hello Catrin, my name is Camila and I have a small business in Brazil to sell small cakes called opaodemel. I work with advertising and my partner with marketing and having kids we decided to have our own business.
AntwortenLöschenOur packaging is based in surrealistic illustrations and now we are looking for one to Christmas and I found one that we love. I`d like to know if you have any interest to sell the rights to use the illustration called Imagination to use on our packaging. If you want to check on us our instagram is @opaodemel
If you have any interest please contact us at this email : prove@opaodemel.com
Thank you, and you have an amazing work.
Best
Camila