The Karoo
Over the past three years, I have had the privilege to spend more time in the Great Karoo, on our farm North-East of Sutherland. I have spent many days walking in the semi-desert landscape, observing the environment and vegetation – allowing it to permeate through me, using all my senses. The Karoo is defined by its unique topography, geology, and climate, as well as its low rainfall, arid air, wide skies, strong winds and extremes of heat and cold. Sutherland is reputedly the coldest town in South Africa. The Karoo landscape is known for its multiple flat-topped hills, or Karoo koppies. The landscape gives me a sense of timelessness and a slow way of living.
This year, I was ready to portray the Karoo in my art.
For the first time, my exhibition will include four large-scale semi-abstract Karoo landscapes. (I did not try to fit the Great Karoo onto a small canvas – hence the large size of these works!) In these paintings, I juxtapose various Karoo elements on my canvas, rather like creating a collage, but in oil paint
The viewer may find elements of the Karoo vegetation (with its beautiful Afrikaans common names): Bergankerkaroo; Soetdoring; Rooikaree; Klapperbos and Tolbos.
Other elements incorporated into my paintings are the Karoo wind mills (windpompe); water reservoirs / dams; dolerite and mudstone rocks; tortoise shells; wire fencing and gates; porcupine quills; cumulonimbus clouds and Karoo koppies.
As I walk on the farm, I keep finding small, old porcelain fragments left behind by people who lived here in ages past. I have decided to paint one, small fragment into every large landscape, recreating the experience of finding them in the dust. I paint these fragments realistically, so that they seem out of place in my semi-abstract landscape, just as they are in nature. And I love these little treasures, especially the ones with colourful detail. I feel rich every time I find one.
Karoo elements that I included in this painting are the following: The Karoo koppie is known as Spioenkop; A stone ruin; Dormant trees; A apricot tree branch making buds; A cement reservoir with reeds; Dried Angel’s trumpet plant; Tiny Purple Drumstick windflowers; Tiny yellow helichrysum flowers known as Skaapbossie; Karoo sweet thorns; and a small blue and white porcelain fragment.
This artwork is part of my Amplify-series:
Amplify:
I am preparing for my first solo exhibition in three years, coming up in September 2024. I am planning to create new fynbos artworks and to do something completely new to me: paint the Karoo landscape, where I recently spend a lot of my time.
I find myself drawn to large scale canvasses, to naturalistic, organic forms as well as drawn to abstraction. I aim to work even more freely and loosely. I see in the works I am creating, that I am increasing the detail of my subject matter and using finer brush strokes with more detail. At this stage, I do not want to over think where I am heading, but just lean into the process and trusting the spirit within me to lead my art to goodness and beauty.
As I walk in the fresh air of Table Mountain, I observe the fynbos plants with all my senses. I look at them intentionally and try to remember not only what I see but also the emotions evoked within me. Similarly, I look with new eyes at the Karoo landscape and see in my mind’s eye the art that will spring from it. I aim to capture my personal view in nature, incorporating the shapes, colours, movement of the wind and sting of the sharp winter air.
I need to amplify beauty around me.
I need to exalt the Maker of all things.