more pix to savour at the forthcoming Facing the Future exhibition

As promised in the previous post, here are more little nibbles of forthcoming delicacies...
by the way note some have a 'spot the deliberate mistake', the opening is on 6th December at 6.30pm

Facing the Future:Portraits for Africa

It is a great privilege to be included amongst the august list of 55 artists who are participating in this exhibition of 550 works at Liebrecht Gallery in Somerset West. Some friends and I will be going down for the opening and I'll post pix as soon as I can... I have seen some exceptional work in the sneak previews... if you are anywhere near the Western Cape in the next 2 months this one is really worth a visit.

Works are all 180x180mm on board and will sell for the same price of R1001.

Participating artists are:

Ambrose, Katharine

Badenhorst, Philip

Bakker, Martin

Barlow, Andrew

Bateman, Tom

Bestbier, Carien

Bester, Kareni

Beyers, Heidi

Bodenstein-Booyens, Anita

Bothma, Alida

Briers, Salome

Bruce, Bronwyn

Coetzee, Jaco

Coetzee, Maritha

Du Plooy, Bert

Frier, Gary

Gaybba, Wendy

Gendall, Glenda

Goosen, Esme

Goussard, Jani

Greyling, Mien

Harmer, Kathryn

Harris, Anthony

Hoppe, Sue

Kruger-Grundlingh, Susan

Lemmer, Deon

Louw, Marina

Marais, Eugenie

Maritz, Marius

Matthews, Sharle

Menck, Clare

Meyer, Liza

Miller-Vermeulen, Elizabeth

Moolman, Bretten-Anne

Nightingale, Rita

Pentz, Jan

Poole, Tanya

Pretorius, Mariette

Rafi, Mike

Sampson, Sharon

Schraader, Elaine

Sinclair, Kennett

Smook, Solly

Schoeman, Marna

Stroud, Zelda

Swart, Hazel

Vale Xenos, Helen

Van Biljon, Karel

Van Coller-Louw, Paula

Van der Walt, Louis Stroh

Van der Walt, Lize

Van der Westhuizen, Anne-Marie

Van Zyl, Frieda

Venter, Alet

Watkins, Miche

Another thing that has made participating in this exhibition so enjoyable has been the fun attitude of the Gallerist, Avril Gardiner, who has kept us informed and on our toes with some very entertaining newsletters throughout the process. Professionalism blended with fun..... now that's my kind of art encounter! Watch this space, I'll share more sneak previews of the work by various artists as it arrives!

Art cards

I have had quality art cards printed, blank inside (the sort of card that is only matt coated on the outside, so still easy to write on inside without the ink smudging.)

There is a wide variety, some older works, some more recent, paintings and photos, a variety of sizes, individually wrapped with envelopes, but can be packed in mixed batches of 5 or 10 if needed. If you are interested, you can e-mail me on sue at elgecko dot co dot za for details.

Emerging

Emerging 800x800mm oil on canvas

lifeblood 3

lifeblood 3 300x300mm  oil and charcoal on canvas

the idea behind calling the paintings/photos/drawings of cattle"lifeblood" is that the name will hopefully get the thoughtful viewer to look beyond the basic image of a cow... whose blood are we thinking about, the cow's?... how does the cow live in order to give up its blood and become steak? or, does it keep its life, as in Kenya, and give blood and milk in order to provide "lifeblood' for humans to survive too? The relationship between humans and cattle varies so much from society to society... ranging from pure commodity to god, from optional to essential, and all shades inbetween. So every individual connects with an image like this differently, depending on their cultural background, and suddenly it is no longer just 'a picture of a cow'.

Preview of forthcoming attractions

I am embarking on a new series of works. It began with the simple idea of combining horns and thorns, ie cattle with large horns and those wonderful large paired thorns you find on Acacia Karoo trees, which bear a striking resemblance to each other. It quickly morphed (as these things tend to do) into a series of ideas around the thought of protecting what one holds valuable, and the fact that those items are relative depending on who you are.

If you are a Dinka Tribesman, your cattle are literally your life, of the greatest possible value, and due to cattle fueds and raids, it is no longer enough to protect them in kraals of thorns. In Southern Sudan, Uganda and Kenya, cattle wars have led to the death of literally thousands, and herdsmen protect their cattle with AK 47s. By contrast, in 1st world countries, we see cattle as just another food commodity, and can take a more flippant approach to depicting them. Our valued possessions often revolve around our fixed property, and we protect it with razor wire and alarm systems.

In a society where respect for women and life is being constantly eroded, there is also a need to protect ourselves. So the range of images emerging is already quite wide, and I will be combining painting, drawing, photography, and ceramics. WATCH THIS SPACE! :)

cow in kraal, photography and charcoal drawing on canvas, 1600x1600mm

still catching up....

As I look through recent posts, I see that I have lost track a bit when it comes to posting photos of all my works. I get so involved in the process of making them, and then things like the festival etc, that it is easy to let some fall through the cracks, but since this blog will ultimately form a (hopefully) fairly complete record of my work, I might as well have a go at filling the gaps. So here, in no particular order, medium etc are some recent works which have so far eluded this blog.

emerging from the shadows 6a 450x450mm

emerging from the shadows 6b 450x450mm

emerging from the shadows 9a 300x300mm

emerging from the shadows 9b 300x300mm

emerging from the shadows 9c 300x300mm

emerging from the shadows 9d 300x300mm

emerging from the shadows 10 600x500mm

shelter 2 1100x900mm

standing out from the crowd a 300x600mm

standing out from the crowd b 300x600mm (SOLD)

Street in Richmond hill 200x200mm

tribute to Turner 300x400mm (SOLD)



Urban decay 200x250mm

urban decay 2 300x400mm

the guests 1100x900mm

Baobab 2.... 4 colour linocut edition of 12

paperbark grove ... 3 colour linocut, edition of 12





side street Istanbul charcoal on Fabriano





relevance 3 burnt sienna pastel on fabriano