Music – blogging, and my daughters:
I sit with a glass of Kleine Zalze Merlot – listening to beautiful music, unwinding after a rather productive day behind my easel. (Or is it “in front of” – I never know!)
I have three beautiful daughters and they feature in my paintings often. They are such an inspiration for me. I used my children as “models” for all these paintings.
This will be a short post in writing, but I do have a lot of photos to share.
This is one of my all time favorite photos. A friend of mine, Michelle, an excellent artist and photographer, took this photo.
Portrait Paintings:
I will always prefer to do more symbolic, narrative paintings instead of straightforward portraits depicting people.
Photo credit to my photographer friend, Gerhard Bouwer
Symbolic Paintings:
Magic:
Oh, I love magic, I love to escape in some non-existing world… existing only for me and I wish my children… all children, to be able to escape from time to time in a world like that. These two paintings are about such moments. Forget about the real world for a moment, about all your worries, go to that place where nothing can affect you…be still… be unaffected by anything…
These two paintings are about such moments. Forget about the real world for a moment, about all your worries, go to that place where nothing can affect you…be still… be unaffected by anything…
My two daughters were sitting at a tennis game, no interest in the game, deep in conversation… Sister love, how beautiful is that… it’s moments like this that time stops…
The energy in words: messages in my art:
I believe that there is a lot of energy locked up in words and therefore I like to convey messages in my work. Messages, not only for my children but also for everyone who might get to stand at some point in their lives in front of my paintings.
Messages, not only for my children but also for everyone who might get to stand in front of my paintings at some point in their lives.
I took these two photos of Jo-Marie while her sister, Heloise, had her matric farewell photo-shoot.
I immediately saw paintings in them.
CONVERSATION “The process of changing or causing something to change from one form to another.” Transformation… The phase in a teenager’s life when everything suddenly changes. Who are you, where to from here…?
ASCENSION: I specifically used this word because I want it to realize in my daughter’s life, in every beautiful young girl’s life. “The action of rising to an important position or a higher level.” Be proud, be you…
Alida, my oldest daughter, we are standing in front of a mural I did.
Fishes are symbolic of transformation. A blank label, we should not label our children, let them chose who they are. – Butterfly, symbolic for metamorphoses, they will change, over and over, a nonstop process… the bird is for freedom, I want them to fly high and free…
The triangle that points downward is one of the oldest symbols of the divine power of the female. The triangle is connected to the number three which can represent true wisdom.
I get a lot of commissions where I have to portray children with their stories and I love doing it! I might do a blog post sometime soon with my commissioned paintings.
You are welcome to contact me to do a painting of your child.
What message would you like to share with your child? The words you would like them to carry with them for life.