From May 30, 2025 to September 30, 2025
“Worthy of veneration due to its divine character or its connection to divinity”
“That which is worshipped because of its relationship with supernatural forces”
Definition of Sacred (from Latin “sacratus”) according to the RAE
The exhibition Claudia Terstappen: Sacred is a reflection on the concept of the sacred from a contemporary perspective in general, and from Terstappen’s personal viewpoint in particular.
Claudia Terstappen, born in Arnsberg (Germany) in 1959 and a long-time resident between Barcelona and Melbourne, has travelled throughout her life across the world (Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Japan, China, Indonesia, Iceland, Canada, the United States, and Spain) to explore, through a unique perspective that merges art with anthropology, the traces of ancient and modern beliefs in both the natural and cultural worlds. In other words, the enduring presence of myths, rituals, and superstitions in today’s societies.
Sacred presents the sacred as understood, first and foremost, in its religious, ritual, and mythological sense—as shown in her Altars—but not only that. Claudia Terstappen’s work also addresses the parallel sacredness of all things related to ecology and nature in her series on Landscapes, including the animal world, which she depicts as both sacred and mummified—deeply tied to the inevitable destruction of nature (as evidenced in her series on Fires).
The relationship between life and death runs deep through this exhibition, which combines photography with three-dimensional media, where the artist makes original use of ceramics. As is the case in her photographs, Terstappen’s ceramic works represent fragments of nature that are worthy of respect and even veneration.
In Sacred, we find works from her series “Sacred Places,” “Altars,” “Cruz del Romero,” “Landscapes,” and “Fires,” along with other pieces created specifically for the galleries of El Principal de Còrsega. Our deepest thanks go to her.
With our sincere thanks to Palmadotze, Boutwell Schabrowsky Gallery and Dominik Mersch Gallery.