2015

it's time for a holiday beautiful people! 

by now i think i can safely say that 
2015 was a CRACKER YEAR for me!

especially on the arting front, 
i learnt SO much, 
i made SO many marks, 
i put myself out there. 

 and thanks to all that, this year has been big 
in most parts of my life.

i am ending 2015 feeling HELD (my word for the year) , 
content, succulent and grateful... 













aaaand...5 days to go!!! 



 thank you for being part of my journey, 
thank you 2015! 

see you on the other side ;) 
with love, always
xxx


merry, merry...


joyeux noel les amis!
thank you for being you. 


remember...
we are all made of stars... 



latest batch


lots of orange, 
must be the summer vibe!





and this little elf has had enough of the 
xmas madness ;) 

into the last month...



and into december we go... 

i'll be honest, this has been the toughest month so far. 
i've been intrigued as to why that is
and here are a few reasons that seem to make sense: 

- i can smell the end...  i'm not particularly good at completing 
things. i'm more a "new beginnings" kind of person. 

- the pressure if off... i'm done with the exhibition which means 
i could be taking a break but i need to keep going with my daily faces
and it's taken me a bit more courage and stamina 
than it did while i was in full arting mode. 

- i'm less organized... while getting ready for the show i was super
organized and efficient at planning my studio hours 
and life in general. 
now i am in holiday mode, 
 and while i like the relaxed freedom of it 
i realized that my creativity needs a bit of structure and routine. 

- i'm resisting the end... as much as i am looking forward to ticking off 
the 365 faces, there is a part of me that is slightly daunted with 
the "and now?" part of finishing such a big challenge. 
what am i going to paint? what am i going to share? 
will i still create as much? 
how will it feel not to have that commitment every day? 
(clearly this is a big one :) ) 






but then again, i'm rushing ahead. 
something i do often. 
the year is not over, and the next step will appear.
deep trust. 
stay present. stay present. stay present...


...

today is a sad day as we say our final 
goodbyes to a beautiful friend.

 it's also a day of remembrance, 
support, love and friendship.



we miss you Sebastian, 
travel safe..



interview

shortly after the exhibition opening i was 
interviewed by the Tonight section of the Daily News Durban,

i thought i would share it with you ;)


here is the unedited version: 

1. How did your journey in art begin?
i was introduced to art at an early age by my grand-mother who was an art lover and my uncle who was an artist and cartoonist.  
they introduced me to the work of masters like Joan Miro, Paul Klee, Picasso and Hundertwasser whom i admire. 

my life took many different turns and careers until 6 years ago when i decided i needed more playfulness and creativity in my world.
i started going to art classes and taking a lot of online creativity courses, i've explored many different style, mediums and techniques since then 
and those explorations are steadily taking me to my own voice and style. 

2. What does the exhibition, Lied Behind represent/symbolise? And being your first solo exhibition, how are you feeling at this point?

lies behind, my first solo exhibition, is all about faces. to me they represent the many faces/masks we "wear" daily to fit in, to belong, to be accepted... 
my faces are playful yet they give a glimpse into other emotions, they invite the viewer to pay attention, to take a deeper look at what may lie behind the masks and the lies we tell ourselves and others. 

this year i mostly worked alone in my studio at home so that i wouldn't get too influenced by others opinions. so when i put my work out there for the exhibition i didn't really know 
what to expect. all i knew was that i had done all i could, that i had had a good time producing that body of work and that i loved what i had painted. yet i also feel like i am at the beginning of 
the journey, i still have so much to learn and explore. 

3. It's a very interesting concept of painting a face a day for 365 days. How did this concept come about?

last year i went to Italy for an art workshop with american artist Misty Mawn in Orvieto. we painted mostly faces for a week. being in that environment, surrounded by others artists, was incredibly inspiring and stimulating for me. 
while i was there i wondered what it would be like to paint diligently every day for a year and where it would take me. so a few of us decided we would take up the challenge from the 1st of january 2015 for 365 days. 

on the first day of 2015 i was still doubtful whether i should take on this big challenge or not and then decided to give it a go, wondering how i would feel by the end of the year if i had tried and how i would feel if i hadn't tried. 
my artist friend Jeanne Marie Webb www.flowrsinherhair.co.za (whom i met in Orvieto) decided to jump in with me and off we went, that was 322 days and 322 faces ago! 

4. Can you tell me more about your creative process and where you get your ideas from?

i always start a painting with a colourful busy background, i use collage and mixed media to get started, getting rid of the intimidating blank canvas and adding interest and layers to the piece. i work form my imagination, 
often finding a face in the pre-prepared background. i get ideas from observing people, their features and behaviours. 

5. Were there any challenges that you faced as an artist over the years?

i think most of my challenges as artist have been about confidence. being a self taught artist i'm never really sure about where i am at with my work and whether i am "good enough and also about finding my own unique style and 
painting "voice". 

6. What can art lovers expect from attending the exhibition? 

hopefully they will smile! they can expect many faces to be looking back at them and they might even find glimpses of themselves in some of them. 

7. Any additional comments?

i want to thank Roz Cryer, my art teacher and friend for pushing me to have an exhibition, artist Dee Donaldson for her wisdom and guidance, artSPACE Durban for the opportunity to exhibit in their gallery and people close to me for their love and support on this journey (you know who you are! ).  



a few things...



as we are getting close to the end of 2015
i'd like to share a few things i've experienced 
during this (what turned out to be a pretty intense) year... 

while painting 1 face a day for the past 349 days, 
i've realized that for me creativity is like a muscle

- we all have it, we all choose to use it in different ways, 
we all use it one way or another. 

- it needs some warm up moves.
 it can be very hard to get it going but once it's warm it flows,
it's more flexible, it has stamina. 

- it needs practice, the more i use it the stronger it gets.

- some days are tougher than others, 
but showing up, even for a little bit, 
can shift the mood of the day or at least build a little bit more experience. 

- it needs repetition.  for me many regular short creativity sessions 
are more beneficial than let's say a 5 hour stint once a week. 
(and it's also easier to put in place) 

- like any muscle it needs rest, recovery time, 
time to do something else, time to do nothing at all. 

- it needs courage, to keep going, 
to keep on keeping on... 

- it needs love... if i love it, i will keep doing it! 





oh and i believe creativity
also needs care and gentle attention. 
it needs to be well fed by everyday inspiration, 
curiosity and exploring. 

news...

guess what, i've finally opened an Etsy shop

it's been on my list for ages and somehow it felt daunting and complicated
so i never got around to doing it. 

and then a few days ago, 
one of my instagram followers kindly asked me to buy 
some of my faces. 

so i looked at my options and jumping on the Etsy wagon 
was the most logical.
and it was very user friendly! 

so here it is: 




i will be adding new art regularly, 
if there is something specific you would want and it's not listed, 
let me know and hopefully we can make a plan! 

playing catch up...











some of these have already found new homes;
 knowing that they might bring a smile to people's faces now and then,
makes my heart sing.