The stately Raven

Parker pen and Black Quink ink with watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
‘Tis some visitor,’ I muttered, ‘tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.’

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door -
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door -
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only,
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered – not a feather then he fluttered -
Till I scarcely more than muttered `Other friends have flown before -
On the morrow he will leave me, as my hopes have flown before.’
Then the bird said, `Nevermore.’
<sup>Extract from The Raven – Edgar Allan Poe – [First published in 1845]

.</sup>
 

Light and shadow

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm 

... light and shadow reveal a silent presence on a kitchen counter…

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Leopard on the rocks

The leopard lingered in the sun
Almost at close of day,
With all its hours almost done
And fast to ebb away…
The leopard lets his memories
Remind him now and then,
Because he knew each day must cease
When moonlight shone again...

Black Pilot FineLiner ink sketch and W&N watercolour on Amedeo 200gsm 

An African Leopard sunning himself on some rocks. Powerful, graceful and arguably one of the most beautiful of all the large cats, the elusive leopard is a master of stealth and survival. 

In the Cape Province south of the Orange River (South Africa), they have been largely eradicated by stock farmers except in rugged mountainous areas. The Cape Leopard that lives in the Cape mountain range is much smaller than its big cousins in the Limpopo region. Their diet is probably the contributing factor, consisting mostly of dassies and much smaller prey.

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Solly's house

“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.” 

― Edith Sitwell 

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm 

Solly’s house (our handiman factotum) on our smallholding (Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa) 

No matter the size or location, a true home is one of the most sacred of places. It is a sanctuary into which men flee from the world’s perils and alarms. It is a resting-place to which at close of day the weary retire to gather new strength for the battle and toils of tomorrow. It is the place where love learns its lessons, where life is schooled into discipline and strength, where character is moulded.

 Another sketch of Solly's house that I did a few years ago

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African silhouettes

The shadows now so long do grow, That brambles like tall cedars show, Molehills seem mountains, and the ant Appears a monstrous elephant.

- Charles Cotton 

Watercolour on Amedeo 200gsm – 12″ × 8″ 

Elephants (Loxodonta africana) in the shadow of a mountain on their way to water in the northern parts of the Kalahari desert (South Africa).

A portion of the Kalahari Desert transforms for a brief period each year from a parched expanse of arid wasteland to a bountiful floodplain packed with channels, lagoons, swamps and islands — and it has the Okavango River to thank for this temporary transformation into paradise.

During the annual inundation, the Okavango Delta region draws migrating animals like a magnet, among them herds of Kalahari elephants. Elephants must have water on a regular basis, so as the dry season reaches a peak, they follow ancient instincts across the scorched and desiccated sands to the promise of boundless waters in the west.

As the elephants slowly make their way toward the delta, many can survive on what little resources they find until they finally enjoy a respite in the rich lands touched by the Okavango. Other herds will not complete the migration and may lose members to the harsh and competitive environment of the desert.

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