Press release
Althuis Hofland Fine Arts is proud to present Schneewanderung by artist Heidrun Rathgeb in Plafond de Paradis.
In Heidrun Rathgeb’s often small paintings, scenes from the artist’s life are paused in egg tempera on panel. From her studio near Lake Constance in southern Germany, Rathgeb alternates between overwhelming landscapes and domestic scenes, such as one of her six children in bed, an open door or a lamp lighting a room. As with many artists and writers (the Swiss author Robert Walser among them), walking is an important way for Rathgeb to get a grip on the world around her. Quite literally, her landscapes are records of her walks, and in her interiors too one can see her fascination with the layered nature of what she observes, emphasized by her strong use of contrast and patterns. Schneewanderung was painted early 2026 after a day hiking in the alps on snowshoes; “I had been amazed at the view looking down to the mountain farm and up again towards the ridge and the steep flanks of snow against the dark pine trees. It was an evening light which turned the snow quite yellow. Living close to the alps, it is a favourite thing to watch the snow changing colour —from blue to light puples, to soft pinks and yellows and what happens to the colours on the shadows. A quick pencil drawing made during my hike, became the starting point for this painting. To me a drawing holds all the memories of that particular moment— not only of position and composition , but also of light wind sound and scent.”
Heidrun Rathgeb (b. 1967) received her MFA in London at the Slade School of Fine Art, after attending the Byam Shaw School of Art. She has held recent solo exhibitions at Sea View, Los Angeles, US (2025); Gallery Sofie Van de Velde, Antwerp, BE (2025), and Haverkampf Leistenschneider, Berlin, DE (2025)
