Claus Bertermann (1965) - Orbit

Artist: Claus Bertermann

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.bertermann.art

The story behind "Orbit"

Night has fallen, and the dance floor is still glowing. A man in a dark blue suit holds a woman in a deep dip. She leans back so far that her hair streams up into the starry sky. Her face is calm, his gaze is focused, and all around them lines of orange, gold and pink swirl like sparks.

In this one moment, the two of them are their own solar system. She lets herself fall completely, because she knows he will hold her, and he is the centre she circles. Even the sun has joined the dance: a glowing orange disc on the left, while the stars shine above. Night above, fire below, and two people in orbit around each other.

About the artist

Claus Bertermann holds a Master’s degree in Architecture (TU Munich) and is an internationally collected contemporary artist, with more than 1,000 large-format works in private and institutional collections, including a monumental triptych at the Technical University of Munich. His abstract paintings have reached top auction results such as €18,900 at Christie's Paris and €15,240 at Sotheby’s Cologne, with further sales at Van Ham, Artcurial and Dorotheum.

In 2026 he started a radically new figurative series: people and scenes in bold, emotional colour, inspired by German Expressionism. First he paints the background with loose, broad brushstrokes. Then he draws the figures on top with oil stick, in clear and confident lines.

Visual description

A man in a dark blue suit stands at the centre of the canvas, holding a woman who leans far back in a dance dip, her pale face turned towards us and her lilac and white hair flowing into a dark night sky full of small yellow, white and blue stars. The lower half of the painting blazes in orange, yellow and red, crossed by lines of pink, green, white and blue that trace her dress and their moving legs, with a glowing orange sun on the left. Signed in light oil stick at the lower right.

One detail for those who look twice: her hair is painted in the same blue and lilac as the night sky. She seems to become part of it, as if the dance has lifted her into the stars.

Why it is worth the price

A large, museum-scale painting from the first year of a radically new figurative series. Its energy is pure movement: you can almost feel the music and the turn of the dance. A joyful, romantic work that brings warmth and life to a room, and a natural choice for collectors of contemporary figurative painting as well as for lovers of dance, music and the night.

Key details for collectors

– Title: Orbit
– Year: 2026
– Dimensions (H x W): 150 x 200 cm (59 × 79 inches)
– Medium: Acrylic and oil stick on canvas
– Original, one-of-a-kind artwork
– Signed by the artist on the front and back side; title, year and the artist's full name inscribed on the back
– Certificate of authenticity included
– Condition: excellent; all surface irregularities are intentional and part of the artist's process
– Sold unframed and without stretcher bars; shipped rolled for safe international transport
– Additional white border of approx. 10 cm (approx. 4 inches) on all sides, allowing professional restretching on museum-quality stretcher bars up to 6 cm (approx. 2.4 inches) deep for a clean, frameless, gallery-style presentation
– Professional stretching is the responsibility of the buyer
– Professional packaging and worldwide shipping with premium carriers such as UPS

Please note regarding the room views:

Some of the photographs show the painting digitally placed in an interior. These room views are AI-visualisations, created to give an impression of scale and presence only — they are not photographs of the actual work hanging in a room. Both the size proportions and the colours shown in them may differ from the original. The binding references are the dimensions stated above (H x W) and the studio photograph of the painting itself. Please also note that colours may appear differently depending on screen calibration.