Talent shaped by Mother Nature

SHOWCASING spectacular works of art at the Fat Tuesday Gallery in Kloof, The Southern Drakensberg Arts Society has a collective exhibition on display until March 23. Twenty highly talented local artists are involved. They have been meeting regularly for several years where they paint, exchange ideas and encourage each other in their work.

Inspired by their spectacular surroundings, including the panoramic Drakensberg Mountains, they have decided to exhibit their art together, demonstrating their common love and passion for nature.

Some of the artists include, Kirsty Turner, Serena Shaw, Rob Leenhouwers, Liz Campbell, John Moat, Frankie Rowley and many more.

Tonight chatted to two of the artists, Turner and Shaw to learn more about their involvement in the exhibition.

Turner has fond memories of using a paintbrush, tin paint box with water colour tablets and colouring pencils from a young age. She says when she first saw the paints and crayons work colour magically on to white paper, she was hooked.

“It was an avenue to express my curiosity about the world around me and I was fascinated by what a pencil on paper could do. I was a loner so art was my preferred company.”

Specialising in painting, the artist says she is also keen to explore 3D forms. Chatting about the exhibition, she says: “It’s a significant episode for me as I have to date been involved in local rural exhibitions. While that has been rewarding, Fat Tuesday Gallery is a highly regarded establishment and has a hugely selective process.

“In this filtering, I feel a higher degree of satisfaction that my work has moved from Underberg and will be exposed to an audience with higher expectations. I’d like to hear the Kloof viewer’s comments and opinions. This is a quantum leap in exhibiting terms.”

According to Turner: “All the artists are surrounded by magnificent countryside. As a result, it’s evident that at the heart of each piece is a respect and love of the environment.

“Here is an assembling of honest portrayals of natural scenes employing different techniques. The artists in this group are surprisingly diverse in their approach but each has uniquely offered their inter-pretation of a time in a place filled with clean, champagne – like air.”

Shaw also became interested in drawing and sketching at a young age. She attended the Grahamstown Teachers Training College and majored in art. As a wife and a mother of three, she did not let her passion for art disappear. “My three children took up most of my time, but when they headed off to boarding school, I started attending as many art courses as I could. I was an artist at Zoo Lake for a while. Our transfer to Johannesburg was the start of serious devotion and I continued to dabble and dream.”

For Shaw, the art soeciety’s exhibition is a collection of works by 16 of its members covering all mediums: oil, acrylics, water colour, colour pencil and ink as well as pastels. The artist says they are extremely proud of their collection: “For those who attend, we hope it will be special and an opportunity to meet some of the artists and enjoy what we have to offer, with humility but great pride.”

• The exhibition runs until March 24 at Fat Tuesday, 5 Bellevue Rd, Kloof. For info, call Shannon at 031 717 2185/9