„[Vesta Magdalena]’s art is an austere exercise and quiet meditation embedded in a fabric of spirituality and eroticism. A search for traces of the glowing core of the self, the unspeakable and the self-surrender in surrender.“
(Jan-Philipp Frühsorge: Les Danaïdes.
In: Les Danaïdes, exhibition catalogue,
publ. by Christian Berst, Paris 2022, S. 24)
Vesta Magdalena is a contemporary figurative artist whose work explores the complexities of the human experience, addressing themes of identity, intimacy and transgression. She works with oil painting and photography.
Drawing inspiration from personal narratives, Vesta Magdalena invites us into a world where the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Her work not only celebrates physical form, but also explores the psychological landscapes that lie beneath the surface. Every detail can turn into a door for a deeply immersive experience.
Her personal starting point can be traced back to the age of 12 when, on a family holiday, she stumbled upon a battered copy of de Sade’s Justine: it was the end of her childhood and the beginning of a lifelong quest, which decades later lead to accepting and living her transidentity.
With a master’s degree in literature, philosophy and psychology, Vesta Magdalena developed her artistic position first in photography and more recently in oil painting. Her work has always been a reflection on the delicate interplay of light and shadow in both the inner and outer world of her subjects.
Vesta Magdalena lives and works between Augsburg, Venice and Paris.
Contact:
vm[at]vestamagdalena.com
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Exhibitions:
Upcoming:
– to be announced soon –
Past:
29.11.2025 – 22.03.2026 77. Große Schwäbische Kunstausstellung, Zentrum für Gegenwartskunst im Glaspalast Augsburg
28.03.-17.05.2025 Sehnsucht Mensch, Zeichnungen von Tilla von Gravenreuth & Ölgemälde von Vesta Magdalena,
Ecke Galerie (Augsburg)
30.11.2024-05.01.2025 76. Große Schwäbische Kunstausstellung, H1, Zentrum für Gegenwartskunst im Glaspalast Augsburg
25.11.2023 75. Große Schwäbische Kunstausstellung, H1, Zentrum für Gegenwartskunst im Glaspalast Augsburg
24.09.-22.10.2023 connected – das Oberflächliche, group show, BBK Kunsthalle, Augsburg
01.-16.04.2023 – 33. BBK group show at Kloster Irsee
18.02.-12.03.2023 ZwischenLeben – group show curated by KVA Die Ecke in cooperation with Galerie Cyprian Brenner, Martini Park (Augsburg)
06.01.-20.01.2023 1von3 – group show curated by Sebastian Lübeck, Ecke Galerie (Ausgburg)
02.04.-22.05.2022 Les Danaïdes – group exhibition at The Bridge by Christian Berst, Paris, curated by Jan-Philipp Fruehsorge (PRESS KIT) – with catalogue.
07.01.-28.02.2021 Neue Mitglieder – group show, Ecke Galerie (Augsburg)
24.07.-21.01.2021 Knieholz (Kneeling Logs), Galerie Noah (Augsburg)
01.02.-16.02.2020 group show ‚How deep is your love‘ curated by Galerie Nue (Paris)
2019 Positions with Galerie z22 (Munich)
2017 group show at Galerie Noah (Augsburg)
2015 solo show at Galerie Benjamin Eck (Munich)
Awards:
2024 International Creative Media Award (gold in the category: artists book) for Liminal
2024 Prix de la Photographie Paris Px3 (silver in the category: monograph book) for Liminal
2021 Prix de la Photographie Paris Px3 (category: book fine art) for Hard Theory
2017 Prix de la Photographie Paris Px3(category: book fine art) for Until I Break (limited edition collector’s book)
2013 Prix de la Photographie Paris Px3(category: fine art) for La Méditation (200×140 cm, fresco print on plaster and canvas)
Publications (monographs):
2023 liminal, limited edition collector’s book, 300 copies, ISBN: 978-3-945179-24-6
2020 Hard Theory, photo book with texts, a publication by Vesta Magdalena, Alexandra Keiner and Chiara Padovan, ISBN: 978-3-00-067091-6
2017 Until I Break, limited edition collector’s book, 300 copies, ISBN: 978-3-00-055804-7
Publications:
2025 Sehnsucht Mensch. Zeichnungen von Tilla von Grafenreuth & Ölgemälde von Vesta Magdalena, ISBN: 978-3-00-081547-8
2023 The Opèra Vol. XI, The Phoenix Issue, Kerber Verlag, ISBN: 978-3-7356-0948-9
2022 The Opèra Anniversary Issue, Kerber Verlag, ISBN: 978-3-7356-0852-9
2022 Goth – Designing Darkness, exhibition catalogue, Design Museum Den Bosch, ISBN: 978-90-8321-0100
2018 The Opèra Vol. VII, Classic and contemporary nude photography, Kerber Verlag, ISBN: 978-3-7356-0463-7
Since 2010 publication of photography work in national and international newspapers and magazines (such as Vogue, L’Officiel, Madame, Qvest, F.A.Z. Magazin and Süddeutsche Zeitung)
Book Festivals (Until I Break):
2017 Vienna Photo Book Festival
2017 Cosmos Arles Books
2017 Gazebook: Sicily Photo Book Festival
2017 Unseen Amsterdam
2017 Polycopies Paris
Book Presentations (Hard Theory):
2021 Galerie Stephanie Kelly, Dresden, as part of Short Dated, a curated book room for over 60 artistic publications
Book Presentations (Until I Break):
2018 Galerie KernWeine, Stuttgart, as a part of the release of The Opéra Vol. VII, November 2018, moderation by Matthias Straub and Romano Dudas (editor and art director of The Opèra)
2017 Cercle Champs de Bataille, presentation chez Madame Louis, Paris, May 2017, moderation by Monika Marczuk (art critic and editor of Cahiers Bataille No. 3 and 4)
Vesta Magdalena’s photographs have been published in: Süddeutsche Zeitung, F.A.Z. Magazin, Qvest, Madame Magazin, Maxima, Positionen, MC1R, 74 Mag, 160g, J’AM, BLUR Magazine, ZINK Magazine, Dahse Magazine, N-Sphere art magazine, Style noir, A/SH, Diorama, BLANC, GLASSbook, AnotherSomething, LolaWho, CuratedbyGirls, Equistyle, Platea Magazine, Hairdresser Journal, noi.se, Nakid Magazine, C-Heads, Schön Magazine, LeMille Magazine, The Opéra, L’Officiel, elle.de, vogue.it, Vogue Italia, Vogue Deutsch