TRANSPARENCY

➜ HOW I WORK

CONTENTS

1

PREAMBLE – TRANSPARENCY AS PART OF MY ARTISTIC RESPONSIBILITY

2

MY ARTISTIC PRACTICE

3

MY ARTISTIC CREATIVE PROCESS

4

ORIGINAL ART, DOCUMENTATION AND DIGITAL TOOLS

5

THE RESPONSIBLE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

6

DIGITAL VISUALISATIONS AND THE PRESENTATION OF MY ORIGINAL ARTWORKS

7

PHOTOGRAPHY, DOCUMENTATION AND DIGITAL IMAGE EDITING

8

PUBLICATIONS, RESPONSIBILITY AND PUBLIC COMMUNICATION

9

INTEGRITY, DATA PROTECTION AND ONGOING TRANSPARENCY

10

COPYRIGHT, TERMS OF USE AND CONCLUDING REMARKS

NOTE ON PUBLICATION

This version is intended to serve as a coherent transparency and principles statement for my websites. For individual publications, an additional brief notice placed directly alongside the relevant presentation may also be appropriate or necessary. Examples are provided in Chapter 6.

CHAPTER 1 – PREAMBLE

Transparency as part of my artistic responsibility

Every era produces new tools. They expand human possibilities, but they do not replace a person’s ideas, experience, responsibility or creative power.

For more than three decades, my paintings, sculptures and ceramic works have emerged from my own creativity, my personal life experience and my craftsmanship. Every design, every visual idea, every composition and every artistic decision forms part of my individual creative process.

Like many artists, I also use modern tools when they provide meaningful support for my work. These include traditional artists’ tools as well as photography, video technology, digital image editing, layout software, web design, 3D visualisations and artificial intelligence applications.

These technologies support individual workflows, assist with the documentation and communication of my works and enable professional forms of presentation. They replace neither my artistic signature nor my personal responsibility for content, design and publication.

Through this transparency page, I openly explain how I work. It is intended to provide visitors to my websites, collectors, business partners, galleries, institutions and all other interested parties with a clear and comprehensible insight into my working methods, while explaining the responsible use of modern technologies.

Especially at a time when digital tools and artificial intelligence are becoming an increasingly common part of everyday life, I consider it important to describe their actual role in my work clearly. This statement serves to inform, to make my processes understandable and to prevent misunderstandings.

I regard transparency not merely as a possible legal requirement in certain applications, but above all as an expression of my personal attitude towards my art and towards everyone who takes an interest in my work.

For me, artistic creativity does not arise from software. It arises from the human being. Technologies can accompany and support the creative process, but they can neither replace it nor assume responsibility for what an artist creates and publishes.

I warmly invite you to gain a comprehensive impression of the way I work on the following pages.

Yours sincerely,

Steffen Maria Ost

CHAPTER 2 – MY ARTISTIC PRACTICE

Art is created by people – not by tools

Since the beginning of my artistic career, the focus for me has never been the tool itself, but the idea that takes shape with its help.

Each of my works begins with a personal perception, a memory, a mood or an inner image. From this emerge thoughts, sketches, colour concepts and compositions which, over the course of the working process, develop into an independent work of art.

This creative process is the result of my experience, my personal artistic signature and my artistic decisions. It cannot be fully automated or replaced by technical aids.

As the possibilities of each era evolved, photography, digital cameras, computers, professional image editing, layout software, video technology, websites and three-dimensional visualisations gradually joined traditional materials. Today, artificial intelligence applications are also among these tools.

Each tool performs a clearly defined role in my working process: a paintbrush applies colour to the canvas. A camera documents a work. A computer supports design, archiving and publication. Software assists with image editing, layout or organisation. An artificial intelligence application may, for example, help revise my own texts linguistically, support translations or prepare a digital room visualisation.

The defining artistic idea, the selection of subjects, the development of a composition and the decisions concerning the colours, forms, materials, proportions and expression of my original artworks come from me. The craftsmanship involved in producing my original artworks is carried out by me, unless expressly stated otherwise in relation to a specific work.

I therefore make a deliberate distinction between the creative process involved in producing an original work of art and the technical aids that support individual subsequent or accompanying stages of work. This distinction is fundamental to my understanding of art.

I retain responsibility for the content and editorial direction of my publications. I decide which tools are used, which results are further developed or discarded and which content is ultimately published.

CHAPTER 3 – MY ARTISTIC CREATIVE PROCESS

From the first thought to the original

Each of my works of art begins long before paint is applied to a canvas or glaze to a ceramic surface. It does not begin with software or artificial intelligence. It begins with an idea.

This idea may arise from a landscape, an encounter, a journey, a mood, a memory or a special moment. It often develops from sketches and notes that I collect over many years and repeatedly reconsider from a new perspective.

Some visual ideas accompany me for a long period of time. They are reconsidered, rejected, developed further or taken up again in a new context until the right moment for their realisation arrives.

Only when an idea has matured sufficiently for me does its physical and technical realisation begin. I decide on the format, material, colour palette, composition, structure, surface effect and overall artistic expression. Every brushstroke, every layer of colour, every alteration and every conscious decision is part of this process.

Many of my paintings are created in several working phases. Layers of colour are built up, altered or reworked. Structures continue to develop during the painting process and give each work its individual surface and distinctive presence.

My ceramic works are likewise created through a multi-stage process. From the initial drawn design and hand-painting through to drying and firing, I personally make the decisive creative choices.

No original is identical to another. It is precisely this uniqueness, materiality and the visible traces of the creative process that give an original work of art its particular value for me.

Documentation after completion

Once a work has been completed, professional documentation begins. I photograph and film my works, archive their details and prepare images for exhibitions, catalogues, websites, press work and social media.

These subsequent activities serve documentation, communication and presentation. They alter neither the creation of the physical original artwork nor its authorship. The clear distinction between the original and its media representation is an essential part of my working method.

CHAPTER 4 – ORIGINAL ART, DOCUMENTATION AND DIGITAL TOOLS

The original remains at the centre

The physical original artwork is and remains the centre of my artistic work.

My paintings, sculptures and ceramic works are conceived, designed and – unless expressly described otherwise in relation to a specific work – executed by hand by me. Every original bears the visible traces of its creative process, the materials used and my artistic decisions.

A later photograph, film, digital cut-out or room visualisation documents or presents an already existing work. It does not alter or replace the underlying physical original.

Professional documentation

Technical adjustments may be necessary when documenting works through photography or film. These may include in particular:

• white balance and colour correction;

• adjustments to brightness and contrast;

• perspective and lens correction;

• cut-outs and background editing;

• retouching of distracting elements outside the artwork;

• sharpening and file preparation;

• adaptation for print, web or video formats.

The purpose of these measures is to prepare the photographic reproduction, to the best of my ability, so that it is as true to life, high in quality and appropriate to the relevant medium as possible. They alter neither the creation nor the authorship of the original artwork.

Digital presentations

For catalogues, websites, social media or exhibition concepts, an original artwork may be shown within a digitally designed residential, gallery, office or exhibition setting. Such a presentation illustrates how the work might appear in a possible spatial environment.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, such a room view is not a photograph of an actual installation and does not imply that the work is located in the place shown. It is an illustrative presentation of an existing original.

Authenticity and responsibility

In digital presentations, I ensure that the defining artistic characteristics of the original work are preserved. Digital tools are not used to conceal the origin of the work, deliberately simulate characteristics of the original or create a false impression of how it was produced.

I review my publications before release and decide which presentations correspond to my actual working methods and to the character of the respective work.

CHAPTER 5 – THE RESPONSIBLE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Artificial intelligence as a supporting tool

For me, artificial intelligence applications are modern tools within an already existing artistic, editorial and organisational working process. They do not assume the role of an artist and do not bear independent responsibility for my publications.

I use such applications consciously and for specific purposes. Their outputs are reviewed, selected, altered or discarded by me. An output is not published merely because it has been generated technically.

Possible areas of use

Artificial intelligence may support me in particular with the following tasks:

• linguistic revision of my own texts and assistance with wording;

• translations into other languages;

• structuring extensive content and organisational preparation;

• research assistance followed by my own verification;

• development and review of layout and presentation ideas;

• image optimisation, cut-outs and media-appropriate preparation;

• digital room visualisations and presentation concepts;

• video, voice and subtitle editing;

• preparation of printed materials and digital publications.

Specific uses may change as technology develops. What remains decisive is that I determine the purpose, scope, selection and publication myself.

What artificial intelligence does not do in relation to my original artworks

• It does not develop my artistic personality or the visual language I have built up over decades.

• It does not independently decide on subjects, themes, series of works or artistic statements.

• It does not paint my physical original paintings in my place.

• It does not create my original ceramic works in my place.

• It does not sign original artworks or assign them a year of creation.

• It assumes no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or publication of content.

The defining overall artistic concept and the creative decisions concerning my original artworks come from me. Responsibility for the content of my publications also remains with me.

Review and factual accuracy

AI-assisted texts, translations, research and visualisations may contain errors or inaccuracies. I therefore review the results according to their intended use, adapt them and publish them only when they correspond to my intended statement.

In relation to statements of fact, dates, names, details of works and other verifiable information, I make every effort to carry out careful checks. If I later identify an error or a potentially misleading presentation, I consider correcting, supplementing or removing it.

Specific labelling of individual publications

This general transparency page does not in every case replace a notice placed directly alongside a specific publication.

Where the nature, content or context of a presentation makes a separate notice necessary, or where such a notice is appropriate in order to avoid an incorrect impression, I label the relevant publication in a clear and suitable manner.

For an illustrative digitally created room view, a brief notice may read:

“Digital room visualisation illustrating the possible effect of the original artwork.”

Where the room or presentation environment shown in an image has been digitally created, the following clarification may be used:

“The original artwork is real; the environment shown is a digital visualisation.”

Such specific labelling does not mean that every linguistically revised text, every technically optimised photograph of a work or every ordinary file conversion must automatically be described as AI-generated content. The decisive question is whether, without a notice, a materially incorrect impression might arise or whether a specific legal labelling obligation applies.

CHAPTER 6 – DIGITAL VISUALISATIONS AND THE PRESENTATION OF MY ORIGINAL ARTWORKS

Presentation forms part of artistic communication

For me, digital visualisations are not a substitute for the original, but a contemporary means of illustrating its possible spatial impact.

Some publications show my original works in digitally designed residential, gallery, office, hotel, medical-practice or exhibition settings. These presentations are intended to make it easier to imagine how the format, colour and presence of a work may appear within a particular environment.

Distinction between the original and the environment

The underlying physical original artwork is not altered by such a presentation. It is the presentation environment that is digitally designed or adapted. Unless expressly stated otherwise, the image is not a photograph of an actually furnished room or an existing installation.

When an artwork is incorporated into a digital environment, its size, perspective, shadows, framing effect and lighting may be adjusted to suit the spatial representation. These adaptations serve to place the work plausibly within the scene and do not constitute any guarantee of millimetre-precise or colour-binding room planning.

Possible technical and visual differences

Digital representations are subject to technical and media-related limitations. Depending on the photograph, screen, operating system, browser, smartphone, tablet, monitor profile, printing process, paper, lighting and viewing angle, the following characteristics in particular may differ from the direct impression of the original:

• hue, colour saturation and brightness;

• contrast, black levels and white reproduction;

• surface structure, material effect and degree of gloss;

• relief, paint application and impasto;

• spatial depth and shadow effect;

• perceived size and proportions within the room.

Such differences are technically determined and cannot be completely excluded even with careful processing. The full effect of a work can only be experienced through direct viewing of the original.

No misleading representation of location, ownership or exhibition status

An illustrative room visualisation does not imply that the work is actually located in the place shown, has been sold there, is permanently exhibited there or belongs to a particular collection. Such facts are stated only when they are true and expressly identified as such by me.

Brief notices for websites and social media

Depending on the context, I use a brief notice for digitally designed room views, for example:

• “Digital room visualisation.”

• “Digital room visualisation featuring a real original artwork.”

• “Illustrative digital presentation; the original artwork is real.”

• “Visualisation illustrating the possible effect of the work within a room.”

The detailed explanations on this transparency page supplement such brief notices and allow interested parties to understand my working methods in context.

CHAPTER 7 – PHOTOGRAPHY, DOCUMENTATION AND DIGITAL IMAGE EDITING

Professional photography of artworks

Careful photographic and film documentation of completed works forms part of professional artistic practice.

Depending on the work, its size, material and intended use, I employ different methods, including high-resolution digital photography, detail shots, video recordings, exhibition photography, tripods, different lenses, controlled lighting and – where appropriate – drone footage.

The aim is to create a high-quality reproduction that conveys the actual character of the work as faithfully as possible and to the best of my ability.

Digital post-processing

As is customary in professional photography, digital post-processing may be necessary. This may include white balance, colour and tonal corrections, perspective and lens corrections, sharpening, cut-outs, background editing, removal of distracting elements outside the artwork, file conversion and print preparation.

Such processing improves the quality of the image or adapts it to the relevant medium. It is not intended to distort the artistic statement of the original or create an inaccurate impression of its actual characteristics.

Different media – different reproduction

The same artwork may appear different on a website, in a social network, in a digital or printed catalogue, on a poster or in a film. This may be caused, among other things, by screen calibration, compression, paper, printing methods, lighting and display size.

Images are therefore not colour-binding. Binding information on title, technique, format and year of creation is provided by the relevant work description, the original itself and, where applicable, documentation issued by me.

Archiving

I document my works and retain available photographs and information concerning format, technique, year of creation and presentation as part of my artistic archive. This documentation supports the attribution and traceability of my original artworks.

CHAPTER 8 – PUBLICATIONS, RESPONSIBILITY AND PUBLIC COMMUNICATION

Making art visible

Art is first created in the studio. Its effect unfolds through exchange with other people. For this reason, publishing my works has formed part of my artistic activity for many years.

I present my works, among other places, on my own websites, through social media, in exhibition catalogues, invitations, printed materials, press information, films and other information media. These publications provide information about new works, exhibitions, projects and my working methods.

Publications under my own responsibility

Content that I publish or have published on my behalf is reviewed and approved by me within the scope of the relevant project. This applies in particular to texts, photographs, films, digital visualisations, catalogues, brochures, presentations, websites, social media posts, press information and newsletters.

I retain responsibility for the content and editorial direction of my own publications. In the case of third-party press coverage, platform presentations or other external publications, I can naturally be responsible only for the content and approvals provided by me.

Truthful and comprehensible presentation

I attach great importance to presenting my artistic work truthfully and comprehensibly. This includes in particular:

• describing original artworks as such;

• classifying digital visualisations appropriately;

• not knowingly presenting facts inaccurately or ambiguously;

• not simulating real locations, events or installations where a presentation has been digitally created for illustrative purposes;

• checking details of works and publications as carefully as possible.

My aim is a clear, professional and transparent presentation – not the creation of a false impression.

Identification and authenticity of my original artworks

Since 1996, I have marked my original artworks according to a consistently applied system. Depending on the type and execution of the work, every original artwork created by me permanently bears:

• my artist’s logo;

• my personal signature; and

• the relevant year of creation.

These markings serve to attribute, identify and date my works. They make their origin traceable and document the continuity of my artistic practice.

Digital presentations or photographs do not alter the markings present on the actual original. If the logo, signature or year of creation is not fully visible in an image due to perspective, resolution, cropping or display size, it remains present on the physical original artwork.

For me, an artist’s responsibility therefore does not end when a work is completed. It also includes clear identification, careful documentation, comprehensible presentation and responsible publication.

Transparency towards interested parties

I welcome questions about my working methods and answer them openly and comprehensibly wherever possible. This transparency page forms part of that dialogue and is intended to explain how my works are created, how they are documented and what role modern technologies actually play in my work.

CHAPTER 9 – INTEGRITY, DATA PROTECTION AND ONGOING TRANSPARENCY

Integrity as an artistic principle

For me, integrity means that the presentation of my works corresponds to the way in which they were actually created and to their actual nature. I do not wish to conceal the origin of my original artworks or create the impression that they were produced in a different way from how they were in fact created.

Nor do I conceal the fact that digital tools and artificial intelligence may be used in individual supporting stages of work. What matters to me is that their role is explained objectively and clearly.

Handling personal and confidential information

When using digital tools and artificial intelligence applications, I take care to ensure that personal data, confidential information and information not intended for publication are processed only in accordance with the applicable data-protection requirements.

Where possible and appropriate for the relevant task, personal details are reduced, anonymised or not entered into external systems. Special categories of personal data and confidential documents are not used for AI-assisted tasks without an adequate legal basis or appropriate authorisation.

This transparency page supplements the data-protection information provided on my websites. It does not replace a privacy policy, required consent, contracts or any other data-protection measures.

Rights of third parties

As an artist, I respect the intellectual property, personality rights and other rights of others.

When publishing photographs, films, music, texts or presentations featuring identifiable persons, I make every effort to observe the necessary rights, consents and permissions for use.

I do not use digital tools or AI applications with the aim of misleadingly attributing statements or actions to real persons or creating the impression of a real event that did not take place. Artistic, satirical or fictional presentations are placed in an appropriate context where this is necessary to avoid misunderstandings.

Correction of published information

If I become aware that information published by me is factually incorrect, misleading or no longer current, I will review it and, where necessary, correct, supplement or remove it. This also applies to presentations in which the use of digital tools should subsequently be indicated more clearly.

Ongoing updating

Technologies and legal frameworks continue to evolve. I therefore do not regard this transparency page as a static document, but as an ongoing description of my working methods. I will update it in the event of significant changes and indicate the date of the current version.

This statement describes my principles and my actual working methods to the best of my knowledge and belief. It is not a general assurance that every conceivable individual case has been conclusively assessed or regulated in legal terms by this text. Specific projects are reviewed separately where necessary.

CHAPTER 10 – COPYRIGHT, TERMS OF USE AND CONCLUDING REMARKS

Protection of my artistic work

My paintings, sculptures, ceramic works, photographs, texts, films, graphic designs and other publications may be protected by copyright or other intellectual property rights in accordance with the applicable legal provisions.

Reproduction, publication, alteration, distribution or use for one’s own commercial or public purposes is not permitted without my prior consent, unless a statutory permission applies or otherwise has been agreed in an individual case.

Protection of this transparency page

This transparency page describes my personal working methods and has been developed specifically for my websites and public communication. It is not a generally available template.

The complete or substantial reproduction, copying or publication of its texts is not permitted without my prior express written consent. Uses permitted by law, in particular proper quotation to the extent required and with acknowledgement of the source, remain unaffected.

I am pleased if my working methods provide inspiration. Other artists and businesses should nevertheless examine their own processes and prepare a statement that reflects their actual circumstances.

My understanding of transparency

For me, transparency does not mean disclosing every technical detail or internal working tool in full. It means explaining in a comprehensible manner how my original art is created, which tools I use for support, which responsibilities I assume and how I avoid possible misunderstandings.

My personal concluding remarks

Since the beginning of my artistic career, my aim has been to create art that touches people, brings joy and encourages reflection. This has not changed to this day.

The tools have evolved over the years. The responsibility has remained.

I see modern technologies as an opportunity to document my art in a contemporary way, present it professionally and make it accessible to a wider audience. At the same time, I am convinced that no technology can replace the human being as the source of artistic creativity.

Ideas arise from observation, experience, memories, emotions, doubts and decisions – and ultimately from the human being.

For this reason, I will continue to combine traditional artistic techniques with modern possibilities in the future: responsibly, comprehensibly and with respect for my own work and for all those who take an interest in my art.

I thank all visitors to my websites, my collectors, my business partners and all those interested in art for their trust and their interest in my work.

DOCUMENTATION

First publication

1 July 2026

Current version

Version 2.0

Last updated

13 July 2026

Authoritative version

The current version published on my official website.

This transparency page will be updated in the event of significant changes to my working methods, the technologies used or the published language versions.

CHANGES IN VERSION 2.0 DATED 13 JULY 2026

• Clarification of the distinction between physical original artworks and their digital presentation.

• Detailed explanation of digital room visualisations and technically induced differences.

• Clarification of the supportive use of artificial intelligence and of my own responsibility for review and publication.

• Addition of appropriate brief notices for individual digital room visualisations.

• Documentation of the system used since 1996 to identify my original artworks by means of my artist’s logo, personal signature and year of creation.

• Addition of information concerning the handling of personal and confidential information and the rights of third parties.

• Addition of a procedure for reviewing and correcting inaccurate or misleading publications.

• Clarification of the copyright-related terms of use for this transparency page.

© 2026 Steffen Maria Ost. All rights reserved.

FURTHER INFORMATION

I have been exploring the possibilities of digital technologies for many years.

Those who wish to engage more deeply with the social opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence may find thought-provoking perspectives in the following documentary:

➜ Terra X with Harald Lesch – And How AI Is Watching Us