Claudia Croneberger

e mail- Claudiasworld@gmail.com

telephone 757-434-1887

I can’t remember any time in my life when I was not passionate about art. From the time I

could hold a crayon I have been drawing things. My mother told me that when I was in 3rd

grade, my teacher complained to her because when I was doing my math work I turned all of

my numbers into little animals and pictures. My mother asked if I was getting the answers

right. I was, so my My Mother said she didn't see a problem.

Creating art is necessary for my well being. I enjoy many forms of artistic expression- oil

painting, mosaic, fabric, sculpture, music, gardening, just to name a few. I see beauty in nature

and the people and animals I encounter. I especially love viewing light and shadow as sunlight

moves through the trees, and I love watching the powerful movement of the sea with its ever

changing colors and shapes. There is music in these things, and emotion. I believe everything

contains a light, and that we are all connected through our shared light.

In 2013 my dear husband told me that he wanted to show me the world. I had never been

out of the USA- except one trip to Canada. I was nervous about the unknown, but I agreed. I

am so grateful I had the opportunity, as it changed me in ways I can’t put into words. We

moved to Naples Italy where we lived for 3 years. We were able to visit many surrounding

countries including, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, and England. Nothing will alter

ones life like living in a different country, experiencing a different way of life.

During our stay, I studied oil painting and ceramics with two Italian masters. We returned to

Virginia and I became a resident artist at The Artist’s Gallery with my oil paintings. After a few

years we once again longed to explore, so we moved to Germany. While there I joined a

quilters guild and enjoyed creating quilts and fabric dolls that I donated to Kinderdorf (an

organization that helps at risk children) and our village rescue squad. I also volunteered at a

local theater in the costume department. I played my flute with our village orchestra (I was the

only American). It was a wonderful experience, but during our second winter, my husband and I

were cold and missing the sea, so we returned to Italy. Back in Italy once again, I was very

fortunate to be selected to exhibit my paintings along with several Italian artists at Rione Terre,

an ancient area in the town of Pozzuoli. That was an unforgettable experience. I became

enamored with mosaics while creating in the studio of my friend and mentor, Maestro Davide

Carnivale and that has been my primary focus of expression. I especially love the idea that

something beautiful can come from broken things.

I often think about what I want to “say” with my art. Sometimes I create a playful scene

simply to bring a smile to the viewer, and sometimes I go deeper. I get inspiration from some

of my own photos, from memories of things I have seen, and from my imagination. One

recurring theme in my art is my belief that we are all powerful beings. Anything we can imagine

is possible to make a reality, and our thoughts and words create our life. I also believe that we

all have an “inner light”; by sharing our light we can be one in love and joy. Some of my art

shows a combination of turmoil and calmness, of extremes. When I lived in Italy, we

experienced earthquakes several times a day. Living with that taught me more about living in

the moment and choosing my emotions. I always try to choose joy. We have little control over

external things that happen around us, but we do have control over our emotions and how we

respond and react. All of these things, and more, are what influence my art, no matter the

medium.

Sometimes I meticulously plan my design for a painting or mosaic. Sometimes it is just a

loose plan or idea that I let flow. I create tiles and low relief sculptures from clay to put into

mosaics. Sometimes what went into the kiln as mermaid hair will become a scarf or a cloud. I

play with the ceramic pieces I make and rearrange them until they click. Much of my creative

process involves intuition and is a meditative process. Sometimes I look to the source (I call it

God) for inspiration, and let the art flow through me.

Sometimes I just paint a pretty picture