Donna Volta Newmen

Donna Volta Newmen was born in 1990 in Chemnitz, Germany. She grew up in a printmaking atelier, an environment that deeply shaped her early visual sensibility. After her foundational training, she went on to earn an MA in Fine Art and Design from the Sandberg Instituut in Amsterdam in 2019. Newmen has since shown her work in a number of venues in Germany and abroad — among them the Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz / Museum Gunzenhauser, the Istanbul Design Biennial, and the British Film Institute — as well as collaborating with institutions like Stuttgart Ballet and Kunstverein Wagenhalle in Stuttgart.

Newmen’s work is rooted in traditional intaglio techniques, especially  etching, aquatint, and drypoint. By mixing these methods with other approaches, like painterly monotype, she opens up new possibilities. Instead of producing a fixed edition, she often reworks her plates, adding new layers so that each print becomes its own variation. The result is a series of pieces in which every work has its own character, shaped by a blend of etching, aquatint, and monotype.

Portraiture is at the heart of Newmen’s imagery. Her subjects—drawn from history, mythology, or her own imagination—are portrayed with an emphasis on vulnerability, resilience, and the layered nature of identity. Botanical textures and organic shapes often weave through her figures, hinting at a deep connection between people and their surroundings. Through her use of line and texture, her works take on a quiet and meditative presence.