Catrine Val German

Catrine Val is an international conceptual artist, working in the field of photography, film and performance. Out of interest in the concepts of time and history, she has focused on the role of women within diverse cultural and political systems and, not the least, on women in the history of philosophy. Throughout her work, identity, feminism, traditions of knowledge, and her own experiences as an artist, woman, and mother are inseparable.

Allegory, critique, and satire underpin Val’s high-fashion, often surreal imagery. Her performative self-portraits muddle the boundaries between critiquing narcissistic digital culture and claiming agency over her own image. Having started her career in advertising, Val works to subvert the pervasive image of female beauty. She seeks to complicate homogenous concepts of womanhood, including historical perspectives that have erased women’s legacies. Through her work, Val has collaborated with women in India, South America, Asia and Europe.

Catrine Val was born in Cologne, Germany, where she completed her postgraduate studies at The Academy of Media Arts where she was assistant to artist Valie Export. After graduating, she was assistant lecturer in the field of virtual reality at the Art Academy in Kassel. She has exhibited widely in solo and group shows across the globe. In 2018, Val was invited to the 24th World Congress of Philosophy in Beijing. A chapter in the 2020 Springer publication ‘Methodological Reflections on Women’s Contribution and Influence in the History of Philosophy’ is dedicated to her work.