Catrin Welz-Stein is a contemporary German artist who combines digital collage and traditional painting to create surreal, dreamlike compositions that exist somewhere between reality and imagination.
Working with vintage illustrations, found imagery, and acrylics on canvas, paper, and wood, Catrin transforms individual elements into new worlds.
Thanks to her ongoing creative journey, a rich collection of surreal, dreamlike art pieces has bloomed. And you can now dive into the artist’s creative process, from selecting vintage elements and crafting digital sketches in Photoshop to completing the final painting entirely by hand.
Drawn to history, dreams, and story-filled photographs, Catrin has always felt pulled to explore the everyday symbolism around her. Although her creative process develops intuitively from a specific moment or feeling, the journey of each piece allows its meaning to gradually unfold as she works.
While her work is deeply rooted in fairy tales, mythology, and hidden symbolism, her primary approach remains bringing spaces of the imagination to life: “exploring color, texture, and the balance between precision and spontaneity,” as she shares her process with Bored Panda.
