Catarina Correia Arnhold is a multidisciplinary ceramic artist whose practice centers on storytelling, intuitive making, and an ongoing dialogue between reality and imagination. Born in Salvador, Brazil and currently based in Lyttelton, New Zealand, she creates hand-built ceramic works that unite sculpture, painting, and drawing—inviting her background in two-dimensional art to meet the tactile and unpredictable nature of clay.

Primarily self-taught in ceramics, her approach is rooted in exploration and process. Beginning with little to no premeditated plan, forms emerge organically through touch, error, and play - where accidents are not only welcomed but integral to her creative language.

At the heart of her practice lies a fascination with myth, memory, and personal narrative. Influenced by literature, folklore, and religious symbolism, Arnhold's work invites viewers into alternate worlds—ones populated by characters, forms, and colors that feel both ancient and imagined. Themes of nostalgia, identity, and fantasy are woven throughout, often accompanied by a sense of the mystical or mysterious.

Symbolic repetition and bold, expressive color bring emotional resonance to each form. While her process remains fluid, writing and automatic drawing serve as quiet undercurrents in her practice, helping ideas gestate before or after a piece takes shape. This interdisciplinary mode of working—alongside periods of collaboration—enables a constant exchange of mediums, techniques, and ideas.

Arnhold’s work exists in the liminal space between the real and imagined, forming a kind of personal mythology. Each piece a tactile story—offering fragments of memory, fantasy, and feeling—objects that live on a preternatural edge, full of potential and presence.

SUPPORT

Star Act is a tiny team of one. Please expect a small wait time on orders and replies, if you need something by a certain date feel free to email me. Each piece is crafted by hand, carrying its own unique quality. Variations in glaze, texture, and brushwork are to be expected - not flaws, but gentle marks of the making. These subtle differences are what make every piece its own.
‍
Your support helps me continue creating and sharing my work. You can:

- Purchase original works from here.
- Commission a custom piece here.
- Share my work with others.
- Send a message or just say hello.