I grew up in a small village in Bavaria, Germany, to a master tailor mother and an entrepreneurially spirited father. My tomboy heart found solace in the grandness of nature and the delicacy of tiny things. Fishing in dresses and pirouetting through ballet classes, I wove a tapestry of contrasts, donning wellingtons for school days and holding tight to our hunting dogs as I learned to walk.
From my grandfather Sebastian, I inherited a love for exploration. After my banker's apprenticeship, I left home at 20, answering the call of my wanderlust. My pursuit of freedom and careers, brought me to Paris, London, Jersey Island, Southern England, Montana, China, and the German North Sea coast before putting down roots 35 years later - in the hamlet of my ancestors in Bavaria. Life goes full circle, doesn’t it?
As a trained Banker, a Business Developer Manager for Startups, and Certified Negotiation Trainer (Harvard University), my career was a symphony of entrepreneurship and deliberate communication. Along the way, after years of big city and small island living, 20+ successful but partly empty years in the corporate world, in 2010, I decided to hone in on the artistic side of my heritage.
Setting out to be the next shining light at National Geographic, I trained to be a photographer. Early on, I swapped the fame of magazine covers for hugs and tears of happy people, so my days are filled with people photography and documentaries. Photography allows me to express my creative side in a purpose-driven life on my terms, and make a positive difference in the lives of others at the same time. I am abundantly blessed to do what I love for a living. I will be a photographer for the rest of my life.
I am a firm believer in taking chances and the thrill of entrepreneurship. I love creating, nothing gives me more satisfaction than seeing my vision come to life before me. So despite my current hamlet-heaven-on-earth-life, I haven’t lost my appetite for a life plump with promise. On my 54th birthday I asked myself what stories my 90-year-old self would be proud to tell. Turns out they are stories of love, self-expression, adventure and travel, immersion, surrender, collaboration and connection, personal growth, bravery, and living a full life. I pour all of it into Sommardale Art, which I founded in 2024.
For Sommardale Art, I create and curate mesmerising nature photography, infused with the spirit of Shibui, a refined Japanese aesthetic that celebrates simple, subtle, and unobtrusive beauty. For over a decade, Shibui has been guiding my distinctive and contemporary language of nature photography, which is a symphony of artistic prowess and feminine grace. Each piece, a testament to empowerment and liberation, invites you - the viewer - to exhale deeply, and find a precious moment of peace and stillness within you.
Much love, Petsy.