ABOUT

Cecilia Westerberg is a visual artist living in Copenhagen, Denmark with her studio in Raadvad – a forrest village outside the city.

My work is rooted in a fascination with nature, cultural history, and magic. The creative process often begins with something personal, something rooted in cultural history, or inspiration from the specific exhibition site.

In recent years, I have been particularly captivated by plants and their versatile qualities. They offer gifts in the form of medicine, food, and colors, serving as a cosmic link between the sun and the earth. Without plants, the sun’s energy could not be transformed into the life-sustaining force that enables existence. From plants, nourishment, medicine, and hues are created, connecting us to the world. Plants are what make being in the world possible. One can find a fragment of the cosmos within a color.

The properties of color from tone to texture, create a challenging and enchanting process. Plant-based colors are sensitive to changes in pH levels, which can cause them to shift their appearance. The result is vibrant and sensory-rich colors, where plant material contributes to an organic and dynamic surface.

Plant-based colors are unique in their ability to merge personal experiences and memories. For the viewer, they may evoke recognition through a past encounter with a plant. For the artist, the color represents the culmination of a long, physical and sensory journey – from soil to canvas.

CONTACT

Cecilia Westerberg
info@ceciliawesterberg.com
Phone: +45 20 91 90 97
Studio in Raadvad 40, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby

CURRICULUM VITAE 

VISUAL ARTIST CECILIA WESTERBERG
Born 1967, in Copenhagen
CVR: 26540798 Nationality: Danish
Member of BKF (Association of Visual Artists) and the Artists’ Society.

EDUCATION

1996–1999: BFA, Chelsea College of Art and Design, London
1998: The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen
1994–1996: BA studies in Art History, University of Copenhagen

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2025: Vestjyllands Kunstpavillon, Videbæk
2025: Nielsine Nielsens Svendborg, SAK, Svendborg
2021: The Overwintering, Bakkehuset Museum, Frederiksberg
The Alchemist’s Laboratory, J.F. Willumsen Museum
2020: The Alchemist’s Laboratory, Malmö Art Museum, Sweden
Herbarium – A Conversation with Plants, Augustiana Art Hall, Als
2018–2020: The Alchemist’s Laboratory, J.F. Willumsen Museum, Vejle Art Museum, Skovgaard Museum, Vendsyssel Art Museum
2016: Here Be Dragons, duet with Stine Gonsholt (Norway), animation and collage, Spriten Kunsthall, Skien, Norway
2013: Atlas of Great and Small Reflections, artist’s book and animation, Trondheim Art Museum, Norway
Atlas of Great and Small Reflections, artist’s book and animation, Danish Graphic Artists’ House, Copenhagen
2012: Heimkoma, animated sound installation, National Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland
2011: The Animal Is Loose, site-specific video projection in Vesterbro, commissioned by Vesterbro Local Committee, Copenhagen
2010: Light in the Streets, site-specific animation in three windows at Blågårdens Library, Blågårds Square, Copenhagen
*Cecilia Westerberg Animation
2010: Cecilia Westerberg Animation, Sørlandet Art Museum, Kristiansand, Norway

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2023: Amazing Nature, KunstCentret Silkeborg Bad
2021/2022: Själö – Poeisis, a poetic herbarium on Själö, Finland
2022: Alembics, guest of Bodil Brems retrospective at Gammelgaard, Herlev
2022: Valborg Performance, six artists collaborating around the Pigment Garden, part of Maria Zahle’s solo exhibition at Rønnebæksholm
2021: Art.Nature.Ritual, co-lab with Mette Borup and Carina Lyall, The forest at Holsteinborg Estate
2019: Drawing Attention, Den Frie Artists’ Association, Den Frie Center for Contemporary Art
Greenlight 2, site-specific video work with Stine Gonsholt (NO), Grenland Kunsthall, Norway
2017: StedSans, Gammelgaard, Herlev
Greenlight, site-specific video work with Stine Gonsholt (NO), Grenland Kunsthall, Norway
Follow the Vikings, visual video roadshow, The National Museum of Denmark and 18 cities across Europe
2016: Ups and Downs, excerpts from artists’ books, The Royal Library, The Black Diamond, Copenhagen (talk and exhibition)
In the Silent Depths of the Forest, sensory exhibition, KunstCentret Silkeborg Bad, Silkeborg
S.O.S. Save Our Souls – New Media Art, Ewha University Art Center, Seoul, South Korea
List i Ljosi – international outdoor video art festival, Seyðisfjörður, Iceland
2015: River Creature, site-specific outdoor animation for Blinc Digital Art Festival, Adelaide, Australia
2014: Winter Solstice, sensory exhibition, Sophienholm
Mapping, site-specific exhibition, Søby, Ærø
2013: Between Reality and Utopia, reflecting on Erik Weie, Esbjerg Art Museum, Esbjerg
2012: The Summer Journey, Skovgaard Museum, Viborg
2011: The King, outdoor site-specific animation for Conwy Castle, Wales, UK, as part of Blinc Digital Art Festival
Faith and Fiction, animated installations, Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, Oregon, USA

AWARDS AND GRANTS

• Recipient of the Danish Arts Foundation’s Work Grant (2024, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2006) and Two-Year Start-Up Grant (2000–2002)
• Danish Arts Council Production Support (2020, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005)
• Work Grant from the Kone Foundation (2021–2022)
• Award for Public Art by the Danish Arts Foundation (2010)
• Danish Arts Foundation Travel Grants (2017, 2012, 2006)
• Toyota Foundation and Scandinavia-Japan Sasakawa Foundation Grant (2017)
• Academy Council Travel Grant (2012)
• Honorary Grant from Victor Haagen Müller’s Foundation for the exhibition The Summer Journey at Munkeruphus (2010)

COMMISSIONS

• Outdoor artwork for Årslev Pathways, Faaborg-Midtfyn Municipality (2025)
• Rønnebæksholm Artspace, sitespecific plant based wall painting and color concept of café and hallways (2025)
• Midtbyens Naturbørnehus, new construction in Sønderborg (2022)
• Ærø Map, permanent work at Søby Harbor, Ærø

ARTIST RESIDENCIES

• LæsøAIR, residency at Per Kirkeby’s studio, Læsø (2025)
• Residency AIR 3331 in Tokyo (2017), supported by the Danish Arts Foundation
• Residencies at The Danish Art Workshops (2024, 2020, 2018, 2016, 2013)
• Scandinavian Association Residency in Rome, Italy (2012, 2013)
• San Cataldo, Sorrento, Italy, scholarship residency (2008)
• Residency on Kökar, Åland Islands (2007)

INTERDISCIPLINARY ART PROJECTS

• Speaker at the seminar The Aesthetics of Alchemy, Birkbeck School of Arts, University of London (2019)
• Video poem based on a poetry collection by Birgitte Krogsbøll, published on Touchbooks by Merete Pryds Helle (2017)
• Illustrations for an interactive app with text by author Merete Pryds Helle, Touchbooks (2016)
• Video visuals for the band Er De Sjældne (poet Lone Hørslev and musician Solveig Sandnes) in 2012 and 2014