Monday 28 April 2014

Painting water and the sea.

Yesterday I met someone who told me he can see that I am a calm person. He sees it in my paintings.That was quite a compliment and I could still hear my late mother's words: ‘Whenever you get into trouble, whenever you get into a crisis or an emergency, become the calmest person in the room and you’ll be able to figure your way out of it.’ 

 A waterfall.

 The sea, foam on the beach. 

 How I long for the sea now!! 


"Sometimes we are lucky enough to know that our lives have been changed, to discard the old, embrace the new, and run headlong down an immutable course. It happened to me ... on that summer’s day, when my eyes were opened to the sea."
— Jacques Yves Cousteau, Oceanographer


Friday 25 April 2014

Some of my earlier paintings

I sometimes don't want to sell a painting or even don't want to give it away! It kind of "grows" on me while I'm busy with it, like a loved one. And I so agree with Vincent van Gogh's words: If only we try to live sincerely, it will go well with us, even though we are certain to experience real sorrow and great disappointments, and also will probably commit great faults and do  wrong things, but it certainly is true, that it is better to be high-spirited, even though one makes more mistakes, than to be narrow-minded and all too prudent. It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strenght and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love, is well done. (Vincent van Gogh)

Acrylic and palette knife on paper. A landscape in Franschoek, Cape, South Africa. 

 Palette knife and oil on an x-raysheet: 36 × 43 cm. Original sold.The stone in the water knows nothing of the hill which lies parched in the sun.
 (African Proverb)
I was thinking about the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa while painting this.

 Oil on canvas.
♪♪ “Take me home country road, to the place I belong….” ♪♪
 


The African daisy provides spring and summer colour with its flowers, which only open in sunny weather. These blooms are available in shades of yellow to red, pink and white. It covers densely with greyish-green foliage and spreading stems.
Oil on blocked canvas: 13 × 18 cm.


Wednesday 16 April 2014

My love for oil

There are reasons why I love to use oil paint. Oil paint is extremely forgiving in the sense that it takes many days to begin to dry. You have about three days (while the oil paint is wet on the canvas) when you can alter any mistakes or remove them completely with a damp rag. Before you decide the painting is complete, take a step back and look at your painting in its totality to see if any changes are needed.
Oil paint is sensuous and I find it highly seductive. Like life. (Ann Dettmer)
Here are two of my latest oil paintings. Hope you enjoy viewing it as I enjoyed creating them.

A river in Africa. The whole country was affected by rain over the past two weeks except the western parts of the Northern Cape and the extreme western parts of the Western Cape.
Why wouldn’t I then think of not painting a wonderful river?
I so enjoyed using oil paint again. This painting is done on a blocked canvas: 18″ × 24 " and for sale. (41 × 61 cm.) Palette knife and brush.


“Calmness is the way we show that we are trusting in God.”- unknown. This could be anywhere on South Africa’s coastline. Painted from my imagination.
Oil on hardboard. Palette knife.

Saturday 5 April 2014

Paletteknife Art

I love to work with the palette knife using acrylics and oil. The art of knife painting is enjoyable and exciting. With a knife as painting tool, one can attain certain effects that cannot be accomplished with a brush. There is so much freedom in abstract art, there is so much joy! The more I do it, the more I get addicted and love it!


I love to work with the palette knife using acrylics and oil. The art of knife painting is enjoyable and exciting. With a knife as painting tool, one can attain certain effects that cannot be accomplished with a brush. There is so much freedom in abstract art, there is so much joy! The more I do it, the more I get addicted and love it!

Videos of my art






Trees in waterpaint, acrylic, oil. Enjoy!!