Jutta Elschleger

As an artist, I move between the worlds of abstraction and figuration. My grandfather's fascinating oil paintings, dedicated to depicting waterscapes, were my first artistic inspiration. After years of dedicating myself exclusively to drawing, I discovered the colorful world of acrylic paint many years ago. My artistic journey started with abstract nude paintings, large format and characterized by striking brushstrokes. Instead of continuing towards abstraction, I found my greatest joy in figurative painting. My preferred technique combines abstract backgrounds, consisting of countless applications of color, with figurative elements, often in black and white and always with a humorous touch. People and animals, which often carry strong symbolic power, are the main actors in my works. Fascinated by expressive faces, I am inspired by portraits and often fashion photos. In addition to people, I also like to dedicate myself to depicting animals, inspired by travel and the immediate surroundings. Charlie Chaplin's motto "If you take life too seriously, you need a lot of humor to get through it" guides my artistic work. I paint with a wink and a deep understanding that life has serious sides, but there should also be room for humor. I worked as a graphic designer in international companies for many years, which shaped my eye for aesthetics and design. I also attended various art seminars that refined and expanded my artistic technique. My participation in art fairs enabled me to present my works to a wider audience and to receive new impulses for my artistic development. Over the course of my artistic career, I have taken part in numerous solo and group exhibitions, as well as numerous juried exhibitions. In 2017 I was awarded the KV Ebersberg Audience Prize, and my works have found their place in public collections. My artistic work combines abstraction and figuration to create stories with an ironic humor, and my pictures invite you not to take life too seriously and to look at it with a smile.