Sketching in the Game Reserve

Some sketches I did while visiting the Krugersdorp Game Reserve (Gauteng, South Africa). The herds stay quite close to the road and don't mind cars in the vicinity, making it easy to do some quick sketches. Some watercolour pencils and a bottle of water is all it takes!

::

 

African bushveld scene

“Every sunset brings the promise of a new dawn.” 

Aloe Marlothii and Giraffe watercolour in hand-made sketch-book. 

The fiery aloe in full bloom, the smell of the fragrant wild sage on a dewy morning and one of Africa’s tallest animals in the back-ground – a typical African Bushveld scene that makes one’s spirits soar!

::

Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros)

W&N watercolours on Amedeo 200gsm watercolour paper 

The Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) is a woodland antelope found throughout Eastern and Southern Africa. Despite occupying such widespread territory, they are sparsely populated in most areas, due to a declining habitat, deforestation and hunting. 

This animal’s true home is stark grey thorn-bush wasted, rocky outcrops and dry desert ridges – It forms the perfect background to display the beauty of this elusive, ghostlike and magnificent antelope of Africa. Bulls are very secretive when they are alone and will stand motionless in bushes and under trees to avoid detection. Then only the most experienced human eye will see them. Just like Hemingway, most hunters experience a passion and a wish to obtain this dream trophy since man is often outwitted by the alertness and fantastic sense of hearing of the greater Kudu.

::

Life is still...

I am thinking of the onion again. … Not self-righteous like the proletarian potato, nor a siren like the apple. No show-off like the banana. But a modest, self-effacing vegetable, questioning, introspective, peeling itself away, or merely radiating halos like ripples. 

- Erica Jong, Fruits and Vegetables, 1971

W&N watercolours on Bockingford 300gsm

Fruit in a bowl on my kitchen table 

I really felt like painting but was stumped as to what! My muse seemed to have gone on holiday and I don't really mind, she deserves it. So I scoured the cupboards and the refrigerator for inspiration and all I could come up with was an onion, a rather bedraggled yellow pepper and two apples. Mother Hubbard’s cupboard was rather bare! The bowl belongs to a friend who brought a salad over for a braai (barbecue) we had a while back. 

::

You are...

… beautiful! Your true beauty lies in becoming yourself. 

Watercolour daisies on a textured back-ground by Kim Klassen

::

Black Wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou)

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm 

Often, when travelling on the Sterkfontein road on our way to Lanseria Airport, these Black Wildebeest cross the road, bringing all the traffic to a halt and resulting in everybody hauling out their cameras and binoculars. I always leave early for the airport, never know what you might spot on the road!

::
 

Black Wildebeest, also known as the White Tailed GNU, are endemic to South Africa, found almost exclusively in the Highveld areas of the country in South Africa. It is a very strange and comical looking specie with its black body, erect mane, long whitish tail, forward curving horns and facial crest. They were on the verge of extinction in the 1960’s, but are plentiful today as a result of careful conservation management. They are often found in herds of females and young males, with the older males either being solitary or forming small bachelor herds. 

::

Baby Elephant walk

“Be humble as the blade of grass that is being trodden underneath the feet. The little ant tastes joyously the sweetness of honey and sugar. The mighty elephant trembles in pain under the agony of sharp goad.” 

- John Ruskin

African elephants (Loxodonta africana), unlike their Asian relatives, are not easily domesticated. They range throughout sub-Saharan Africa and the rain forests of central and West Africa. The continent’s northern-most elephants are found in Mali’s Sahel desert. The small, nomadic herd of Mali elephants migrates in a circular route through the desert in search of water. 

Having a baby elephant is a serious commitment. Elephants have a longer pregnancy than any other mammal—almost 22 months. Cows usually give birth to one calf every two to four years. At birth, elephants already weigh some 200 pounds (91 kilograms) and stand about 3 feet (1 meter) tall. 

• Elephants typically reach puberty at thirteen or fourteen years of age 
• They have offspring up until they are around fifty years old 
• They may live seventy years or possibly more 
• A cow produces a single calf and in very rare cases twins 
• The interval between births is between two and a half to four years 
•  An elephant´s trunk, a union of the nose and upper lip, is a highly sensitive organ with over 100,000 muscle units.

::

Valentine roses

 Black ink sketch with Coffee (Nescafé instant, very strong) plus Cadmium Red and a mix of greens

Valentine’s Day reminds me 

of the smile I smile

every time I think of you, 

the emotional lift I feel 

at the sound of your name. 

Valentine’s Day reminds me 

of the strength and comfort I get 

from knowing 

there are people like you in my life. 

Everything good about Valentine’s Day 

reminds me of you. 

Happy Valentine’s Day! 

By Joanna Fuchs

::

Cheetah on the rocks

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

Stalks of brittle grass, towering and light-russet in colour, rose several feet high on the breezy African plain. A faint rustle sounded among the grass. Two sparks of amber, the eyes of a creature, lit up the maze of grass like candle flames, and hovered there. The crackle of shifting stalks grew louder until the grass parted, revealing a magnificent beast, dappled pelt rippling as if made of glistening gold. 

Majestically, the cheetah strode into a rock clearing where a light breeze blew swirling dust at her head. She blinked, unfazed. Suddenly, crouching into a stalking position, her muscles pulsed with tension. With explosive speed, she propelled herself across the plain… 

- Read the rest of this lovely story at A Day on the Savannah 

The Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) has unusually low genetic variability. This is accompanied by a very low sperm count, motility, and deformed flagella. Skin grafts between unrelated cheetahs illustrate the former point in that there is no rejection of the donor skin. It is thought that the species went through a prolonged period of inbreeding following a genetic bottleneck during the last ice age. 

Cheetahs are found in open and partially open savannahs, inhabiting most of Africa and parts of the Middle East and they are basically solitary animals. At times, a male will accompany a female for a short while after mating, but most often the female is alone or with her cubs. Cheetah mothers spend a long time teaching their young how to hunt. Small live antelopes are brought back to the cubs so they can learn to chase and catch them. 

Cheetahs do not roar like lions, but they purr, hiss, whine and growl. They also make a variety of contact calls – the most common is a bird-like chirping sound. They are the only existing felines that do not possess retractable claws.

::

Keep Peace in your Soul

"In the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul." 

I just love playing with free textures I find on the web and use them as back-grounds to a lot of my paintings. Here I have used one of Kim Klassen's textures, which worked out well with this arum Lily.

I often print out the texture first and then paint on top of it, but in this case I added my Arum Lily image to the texture in PhotoShop. Printed out on some watercolour paper it makes a lovely every-day card.

::