Category: Illustration

The Makings of “A Floral Revolution”

I love being an illustrative printmaker. But, for a long time I avoided accepting this about myself. I felt an extraordinary pressure to be a ‘real’ artist, not an illustrator. This stemmed from the fact that most of my crit sessions from university had the word “illustration” dropped into the feedback I received, and not in a nice way. I felt as if, unless I was able to break away from my illustrative tendencies, my work would never be accepted, never be successful and never be taken seriously.

Without anyone ever explicitly saying it, this is what it felt was the definition of being an Illustrator:

To illustrate, Illustration, Illustrative.

A sell-out artist.

Colloquial swearword in art world.

Artistic masturbation.

Not real art.

Nope.

Evidence of a lack of talent, skill and conceptual depth.

To make worthless pictures no one important will ever like.

A waste of time.

Rudimental escapism.

Not a worthy artistic pursuit.

Boring.

Ag, shame.

Art taboo.

Pictures to hang in your bathroom.

Over the last few years I have come to realise the power of illustration. I have also realised that there is so much space for it in the art world. There is enough space for conceptually complex art to exist alongside illustrative work, and that neither need to compete with each other.

This year, in particular, I have come to fully embrace and enjoy my illustrative tendencies. I’ve come to realise that being able to make art full time is one hell of a generous and rare career – and that I shouldn’t be wasting this precious opportunity on trying to make anything other than what I really want to: fun, playful, humourous illustrations.


So, in some ways, this artwork feels like a revolt against all those unspoken undercurrents that weave their way into the beliefs of so many talented artists. “A floral Revolution” is the absolute act of revolt against my own fear of pursuing illustration. It is a way of standing up against the voices who littered my own thinking about art, being told not to make pretty pictures of pretty things just because they’re pretty.

With 35 screenprinted layers, this “illustration” is the most complex and challenging artwork I have ever endeavoured. It is a celebration of illustration.

Here are the 35 layers:

A Floral Revolution

This piece is on display and available for purchase this month at The Printing Girls’ annual exhibition at The Art Room (Parkhurst, JHB). The show opens on the 4th of July and runs until the 31st of July.

The printing process of A Floral Revolution:

The Makings of “Monkey’s Wedding”

It’s so much a part of our vernacular that I assumed it was like any ordinary idiom, used around the world and understood by most people as a ‘sun-shower’. That magical moment when the sun is shining AND it is raining, and everything glimmers and feels unreal.

There are few things as extraordinary as a Monkey’s Wedding in the heat of a South African day. I can remember the tangible excitement that would flush over me as a child when I realised we were having a Monkey’s wedding. And now, as an adult, I still find Monkey’s Weddings captivating: the rain pouring down for these few fleeting moments while the sun is shining cheerfully through the clouds; making the light, raindrops, and atmosphere all around me shimmer.

And then, as quick as it came, it was gone. Like all magic.

The saying, Monkey’s wedding, comes from a Zulu phrase in South Africa,

umshado wezinkawu

Translation: A Wedding of Monkeys

I can’t wait to see Fynch’s reaction to seeing their first Monkey’s Wedding in our backyard.

The Process

As with most of my work, this piece started in my sketchbook.

While in the middle of our home renovation and restricted bed rest, I drew up the key layer for this print. Jazz-cat offered immense support and kept me company.

A couple months later, finally set free from bedrest and in my new studio (whoop whoop), I then went on to draw out each of the other colour layers for this print. There are 9 colours in total. The last one, pearlescent, is a transparent shiny layer, to give the glimmering effect of the rain during a Monkey’s Wedding.

This is how the positives look, stacked on top of each other as they will be printed:

And just for fun, I thought i’d make a crude colour representation for you to visualise in colour what the final print might look like:

The Makings of “Splish Splash”

This piece was inspired by the nostalia of music from my childhood. Music is such an integral part of my memories. “Splish Splash” by Bobby Darin takes me straight back to the lounge I grew up in, dancing and twirling around with my brother and dad.

Taking inspiration from this memory I imagined a scene in my garden with a few Indian Minas and my ever-up-to-no-good Pluto cat.

The mischievous fun had in the lounge of my childhood is re-imagined in the lives of the beautiful creatures that bring me so much entertainment now.

And, of course, a major driving force of this piece is imagining that stories we will create with Fynch, opening up the greatest strength and power any of us have – our wild imaginations.

Pluto assisting in the planning on “Splish Splash”

Each Separate positive layer created for this screenprint

Layering each positive

Now that the positives are done, all that is left to do is expose the screens and print the edition. It was be an edition of 5 prints, each 60x60cm large. I”m really looking forward to printing this one. I spent a lot of time thinking about the layering and textures within the leaves and bushes. 🙂

Lockdown Post-it Note Collages

I’ve started a new, fun side-line project making collages onto post-it notes. Collages that express how I feel about the times.⁠ Post-it notes are used to illustrate ideas, or jot down important information. Using them as the starting point for these collages helps me to ‘jot down’ the most important ideas, moments, defining elements of lockdown, personally. THey’re a way for me to record this unusual time, and remember it. To acknowledge the significant events and changes in the way I think, that have come about through Covid19 2020 lockdown.

Unsung Art

Click on Unsung’s Logo to listen to my Podcast Episode

During July 2020 I was interviewed by Warren and Inge from Unsung Art Podcast. I’ve worked with Unsung Art for years, and admire their continued efforts to give lesser-recognised artists in SA a platform to show and sell their work.

Unsung Art was launched in 2014 by Jessica Kramer as a means to give local artists an opportunity to sell their work online. Since then, it has been taken over by current owner/operators Inge and Warren, whose vision for the brand has bolstered it into one of the foremost online marketplaces for original South African art.Unsung Art strives to create a fantastic customer experience with each parcel wrapped with our uniquely branded packaging and a personalized note to the client, which can be customized for gifting.

Local artists now have a space to showcase their works and grow their art career in a safe and open environment.

With art for anyone’s taste, great customer service and free national shipping, there is no reason not to support the amazing local art talent in our beautiful country.

I have a selection of artworks available at Unsung Art online gallery.

MASSA

One of my guilty pleasures is miniature art, which is why I am a committed member of MASSA (Miniature Art Society of South Africa)

The Miniature Art Society of South Africa was founded in 1992 at the instigation of Charmian Kennealy, who had participated in the Miniature Art Exhibitions throughout America and Canada, and Jeff Sochen whose interest in miniaturism was the catalyst needed to help her. The first meeting was held in February 1992.

With miniature art societies, world-wide, reviving the age old artform, it seemed only right that we, in this part of the world, should have a like-minded band of artists promoting and pursuing it. For many artists the more disciplined and detailed approach of miniature art was a welcome change from the predominantly large and freer paintings in fashion today.

The Society has some 65 members throughout South Africa. It has held successful exhibitions in all the main centres of South Africa. We are affiliated to the World Federation of Miniaturists and have participated successfully in four world exhibitions where our work was highly acclaimed. We keep in touch with the ten other recognised societies in the world through the exchange of newsletters.

Our headquarters are in Johannesburg ,and regular meetings and demonstrations are held in a pleasant little hall in Edenvale.

Beefeater Series

This piece is a work in progress of a beefeater chopping some onions and tearing up (because, onions). My beefeaters series is my way of facing the bizarre traditions and rituals that are part of my British heritage. Beefeaters, to me, have become a tongue-in-cheek symbol of colonialism – they are the guards of all the so-called civilised, enlightened, proper, well-behaved ways of life. But they’re just smoke and mirror and beneath the facade of their ridiculous costumes, they’re just ordinary creatures of everyday habits.

This series is available at Out of the Cube online gallery.

Flights of Fancy

A collaboration in whimsy by Amy Jane van den Bergh and Elizabeth Tristram

Whimsy (n) whim.sy | \ ˈhwim-zē

  1. WHIM, CAPRICE
  2. The quality or state of being whimsical or fanciful
  3. A fanciful or fantastic device, object, or creation especially in writing or art

Both Fine Art graduates from Rhodes University, Elizabeth Tristram and Amy Jane van den Bergh have been working together over the past few years. “Flights of Fancy” is a collaborative exhibition between the two artists.

Each of the artworks began with Elizabeth’s watercolour succulents – a theme she enjoys exploring. Then, Amy Jane, whose art practice is focused on birds, screen printed the whimsical, playful figures over the completed paintings.

Watercolour captivates me, I fell in love with the delicacy and looseness required for watercolour work

Elizabeth Tristram

“I like my work to be playful and imaginatively illustrative” 

Amy Jane VDB

What started as an exploration of the artists’ individual themes resulted in a collaborative body of work that celebrates playfulness and whimsy. This exhibition presents a refreshing perspective, to be relished by anyone who recognises that art is not always a serious business. It showcases the light-hearted nature of illustration, and the joy of creating, and of being artists.

Theme: Overlay by Kaira Extra Text
Pretora, South Africa