Nancy Tschetner

Nature has always been a big part of Nancy’s life. She grew up in a small village in east Germany, in the state Thueringen, also called “The Green Heart of Germany”. called “The Green Heart of Germany”. From a young age, Nancy created strong connections with nature by spending most of her childhood outdoors: building tree huts and crafting with natural found objects.

What keeps her motivated in her artistic endeavors is the need to find herself in quiet and wild spaces to find the inspiration required to create. Generating links between the natural environment and the art that comes within herself is the essence of her practice. The wheel of internal inspiration always starts spinning and provides countless ideas when she sees textures and patterns in the outdoors.

Nancy's adventurous spirit  led her to move to New Zealand in 2003. 

"When I first discovered the unique beauty and the sparkly texture of the black iron sand, it inspired me ever since to embrace it in my paintings. Through experimenting with different mediums, natural sand became my preferred ressource to express my artistic ideas." 

Over the past 20 years, she developed her own style and presentation of art. The 100 shades of New-Zealand and international sand pigments used by Nancy enables her to depict landscapes, portraits and abstract visions. The sparkly textures and depth of the sand brings any subject to life. 

"Gradually, each grain becomes part of a larger image. Just like us, when we come together and stand together, we are stronger and can achieve greater things. I can see the development of my work over time and it excites me – I’m eager to see what else is possible. I constantly push boundaries to create 3 dimensional depth and textured art.

At times, she uses crushed glass to invent new colors  that are not available if using sand alone. 

"I like to remind people of the importance of our valuable relationship to Mother Nature and our roots. It is this connection that enriches our lives."