Going small

 A collection of sketches in a hand-made sketch-book with hand-crafted satin-finish linen paper. 💚

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Going back in time

 

Seeing as I haven’t particularly been painting for a while (my Muse let me know that she’s on her way), I am looking back in time — memories of my gardener, Chrissie, and sunshine days gardening and painting in, what feels like, a previous life-time.

Chrissie doing her Autumn chores

Chrissie and Tappeltjie off to do some shopping

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Whats on my easel today?

 

I have not been painting as much as I should. Fullstop. I don't actually have an excuse except to say that life happens. And boy, did it happen over the past four years! We retired from Gauteng to the Dolphin Coast, KwaZulu Natal in December 2017 and it took a while for us to find our next forever home and to get settled in. So that's my one excuse for not painting, feeling unsettled and trying to get my groove back. 

Then, in December 2019, my husband was diagnosed with a Meningioma, a benign brain tumour that had to be surgically removed. After 6 weeks in hospital and 4 weeks in rehab, hubby was finally ready to come home. But all was not sunshine and roses -- the pressure of the tumour on the frontal lobe of the brain had taken its toll, causing loss of memory, several strokes and a certain amount of loss of movement. Adjusting to this new challenge in our lives took up all of my time and energy, and even during some quiet moments that I had to myself, I was unable to find my muse and my brushes and paints stayed in the cupboard, patiently awaiting my return. That's my second excuse.

My third excuse goes like this ~ the colours here at the coast are all wrong! Everything is either blue or either green. And there's no grass here. I kid you not. Only sugar cane fields. Lots and lots of sugar cane! and there are no Blue gum trees here, or very few, and they are the wrong species. Long empty branches with tufts of leaves at the end of each branch. Now I'm no stranger to painting with blues or greens, I have even done many beach scapes during my visits to the coast in earlier years.

And now my muse seems to be stuck in Transvaal and bushveld colours ~ browns and yellows, oranges and reds, browns and greens, even black, and my eye keeps looking for waving fields of grasses, green in summer, yellow in winter, but lots and lots of waving fields of grasses! And the Highveld trees ~ oh my! Acacias and Karees, Blue gums and Stinkwoods, Cussonias and Combretums. Even the Aloes here are different!

But I am slowly and surely learning about all the coastal trees and one thing the Coast has in common with the rest of the country, is that succulents thrive here. I can already feel that the Highveld is relinquishing her hold on my muse and soon we will be at it again full throttle!

For practice, an old painting given a fresh new look.

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Rhus lancea leaves - Black Karee - Botanical illustration

W&N watercolour on Amedeo 200gsm mixed media paper
Leaves of a Black Karee tree in my garden (Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa)

Indigenous to Southern Africa, this tree is a bit untidy with a weird growing habit of the branches backing up on one another and having most of its leaves right at the tip of the branches. It has a graceful, weeping form and dark, fissured bark that contrasts well with its long, thinnish, hairless, dark-green, tri-foliate leaves with smooth margins. The small, inconspicuous flowers are presented as much-branched sprays which are greenish-yellow in colour and are produced from June until September.

The fruit are small (up to 5mm in diameter), round, slightly flattened and covered with a thin fleshy layer which is glossy and yellowish to brown when ripe. The fruits are produced from September until January, and during that time, my garden is a total mess! And if it happens to rain a lot, I have hundreds of seedlings sprouting up throughout the garden. And yet I have never been able to remove one and grow it successfully …

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Gum leaves - Botanical illustration

W&N watercolour on Amedeo 200gsm

Dedicated to all Eucalypt and Bee-lovers.

A recent study by the SA National Biodiversity Institute (Sanbi) in South Africa has found that gum trees provide nectar and pollen for swarms of commercial bees – and bees in turn pollinate about 50 food crops in the country. This “service” bees provide is worth about R10.3 billion a year.

Gum trees are not only important food for bees, but so are many roadside wildflowers, crops, suburban flowering plants and those that many regard as weeds. A major reason for the decline of honey bees around the world is a lack of good forage plants to provide nectar, which is the carbohydrate in the bees’ diet, and pollen the protein. Bees collect nectar from Blue Gum tree blossoms from spring to late summer.

A lack of good quality and variety of forage plants can lead to unhealthy honey bee colonies that are more vulnerable to pests and diseases.

This in turn can lead to insufficient pollination of our important agricultural crop flowers, leading to a decreased yield or quality of the food crop, Insect pollinators are needed for 35 percent of all food production globally – or one of every three bites you eat.

Although most Bluegums have been declared as an invasive species in South Africa, Beekeepers are highly dependent on eucalyptus and if they are all removed because they are aliens it would mean a serious shortage of food for bees – with a knock-on effect on crop pollination.

Because of this, the Department of Environmental Affairs’ legislation on alien and invasive species, updated in 2014, is “nuanced” for eucalyptus trees, not requiring all of them to come under the axe or chainsaw.

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Dark reaction

Acrylic on canvas

The dark within awakes.
My very breath it takes.

Bloody black feelings stir
growing shadowy black fur.

A drop of hate -
A torrent of anger -

A sheet of darkness -
A shard of light-

I lost track.
~ Mau Rose

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My favourite outfits

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

I just love autumn shades and these days comfort also plays a huge roll in planning my wardrobe - gone are the days of squeezing into tight jeans or hobbling along on 6" heels - go with the flow is what I say!

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Herbs in pots - Oregano

Bladk ink and watercolour sketch in watercolour sketch pad.

Having herbs in terracotta pots on your kitchen windowsill is an excellent way of always having fresh herbs handy for your cooking.

This aromatic, ancient culinary herb (Origanum vulgare), also referred to as “wild marjoram,” originates from the hilly, Greek countryside, and is now grown all over the world. Its pungent, spicy, slightly bitter flavour pairs well with almost any vegetable preparation.

Bluegum fantasy

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm in small sketch-book

Blue gum eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus to the botanists), have been a part of the South African landscape since the Gold Rush, long enough that legends have sprung up about how they first made it to the country. The usual story is that 19th Century gold miners encouraged planting of the trees as a quick-growing source of quality lumber, then were disappointed to find out that South African-grown eucs produce wood unsuitable for much besides rough fenceposts and firewood.

The stories have some factual basis: there was a speculative eucalyptus-planting rush in the first years of the 20th Century, with people planning uses from fine furniture to rot-resistant railroad ties. And the home-grown trees, which grew far more quickly than their Australian counterparts, did not turn out to make lousy timber! The logs were extensively used in our mining industry and to this day they are still popular as fence posts and roof timber.

Herbs in pots - Lemon thyme

Ink and watercolour sketch in watercolour sketch pad.

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Having herbs in terracotta pots on your kitchen windowsill is an excellent way of always having fresh herbs handy for your cooking.

In cooking, lemon thyme (Thymus citriodorus) delivers the best of both worlds. It has a soft herbal thyme flavour along with a subtle essence of lemon, all without any of the bitterness we sometimes get from regular thyme. It pairs well in everything from salads and vegetable dishes, to meat, and fish.

Lemon thyme is also used for the following :

• relieving muscle spasms
• has anti-aging properties
• immune system
• easing digestion
• easing a tight chest
• constant coughing
• relieving asthma
• promotes relaxation
• laryngitis
• gastritis

African buffalo

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

African buffalo or Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer)

African buffaloes are strong and imposing animals of the African savanna, but today few populations exist outside the confines of national parks. These formidable grazers are the only wild cattle species, and bonds between females are strong. If one individual is under attack from a predator, the herd will rush to the victim’s defence, and a herd is easily capable of driving away an entire pride of lions.

A happy ending

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth. They do not preach learning and precepts, they preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life.

“Love the trees until their leaves fall off, then encourage them to try again next year.”

 

 

The Dragonfly and the Daisy

 Black ink sketch on Bockingford

After spending several years under water in fresh water, the Naiad (Dragonfly larvae, about 2cm in length) emerges, crawling up a plant stalk, usually at night, as a fully grown Dragonfly (order Odonata). They may be on the wing for just a few days or weeks and are fast, agile fliers, sometimes migrating across oceans, and are often found near water. I’ve watched them emerging from my wildlife pond many a time and am always amazed at the beauty that comes from such a voracious (and ugly!) little predator, capable of catching small fish twice their size.

A farm fence

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

I'm absolutely besotted with farm fences and gates and just cannot drive past without stopping to take a photograph or a quick sketch. There's something about a fence that says, "This is the boundary, please don't pass" and an open gate is always an invitation to drive through and see what's on the other side!

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White-browed Sparrow Weaver

W&N Watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

A Bird A bird came down the walk, He did not know I saw; He bit an angleworm in halves And ate the fellow, raw. And then he drank a dew From a convenient grass, And then hopped sidewise to the wall To let a beetle pass. - by Emily Dickinson 

These White-browed Sparrow Weavers used to be regular visitors to my old garden in Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa. I see their environmental status is listed as LC "Least Concern", which I'm so glad about, they are real little characters.

They have a general, harsh 'chik'chik' call when they're flocking, as well as a loud, liquid 'cheeoop-preeoo-chop' whistle, which I really miss... The White-browed Sparrow-Weaver is found in greatest numbers in north-central southern Africa. While this species most densely populates at dry regions with woodland or wooded grassland in northern South Africa, its range includes Botswana, the North-west Province and Western Gauteng, northern and central Namibia, and western Zimbabwe. It is seen very often in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia and southern Malawi. Populations may be found as far north as Ethiopia.

I'm particularly sorry that I probably won't be seeing them here in KZN, although I have noticed a smaller, less colourful little sparrow, which could probably be passed off as a distant cousin! 

H. hortensis

Flowers have a mysterious and subtle influence upon the feelings, not unlike some strains of music. They relax the tenseness of the mind. They dissolve its vigour. - Henry Ward Beecher 

   

Hydrangeas - a small watercolour sketch on Bockingford 300gsm  

Hydrangea H. hortensis, the common garden species, is a native of China or Japan. Here in South Africa they are also known as "Christmas Roses" as they normally flower in December. For us in South Africa, Summer means a bright, sunshiny Christmas and it also means Hydrangeas! They start flowering during late November, through December until January. Instead of Holly and Ivy decorating tables and mantles, it is the Hydrangea that takes pride of place! 

Some years ago a friend gave me a huge bunch of Hydrangeas and, after sketching them, they were hung in my potting shed to dry. Provided you hang them in a fairly damp-free area, they maintain their full, bright colours for a really long time.

Bushveld tranquility

Artline200 Fine-point Black ink pen and W&N watercolour in my Moleskine 200gsm Nature Journal

Since moving to the North Coast of KZN from Gauteng, I have these flash-backs of bushveld life. I try not to live in the past, but let's face it, spending 70 years of your life in a bushveld area is not to be sneezed at. I really do miss fields of waving savannah, Highveld trees and all the animals and insects that make their home there. 

The sketch above is a memory of long summer days spent fishing with my father when I was a kid and just generally revelling in a summer in the Bushveld.

The Limpopo river, the second largest river in Africa, flows in a great arc, first zig-zagging north and then north-east, then turning east and finally south-east. Then it serves as a border for about 640 kilometers (398 mi), separating South Africa to the south-east from Botswana to the north-west and Zimbabwe to the north. There are several rapids as the river falls off Southern Africa’s inland escarpment. In fact where the Marico River and the Crocodile River join the name changes to Limpopo River. The waters of the Limpopo flow sluggishly, with considerable silt content. Rainfall is seasonal and unreliable: in dry years, the upper parts of the river flow for 40 days or less.
- Info Wikipedia

Make a change - sketch in old books

Red Bishop (Euplectes orix) using W&N watercolour, no sketching beforehand, just got a quick glimpse of him on the fence post

Sometimes the urge to paint is too much to still go in search of paper, so painting and sketching in old books (in stead of throwing them away) has always made sense to me.

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Soaring fire

Just a quick hello and to let you know I'll  be back (soon!) Moving house from one end of the world to the other (OK, from one Province to another, but it seems like the other side of the world to me!) is very disruptive and a year later I'm only just starting to find my feet. Not all just because of the move, other factors have also played a part, but suffice it to say that my muse seems to be popping around more and more often these days and my paint brushes are getting more alluring by the day.

And here's a little piece of wisdom for today...

A quick little practice to get a feel for the paints again... Soaring Fire That Sweeps And Sings - a scene often seen on our smallholding in Gauteng

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Herbs in pots - Coriander

Ink and watercolour sketch in watercolour sketch pad.

Having herbs in terracotta pots on your kitchen windowsill is an excellent way of always having fresh herbs handy for your cooking.

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) is an extremely popular herb that is used extensively and liberally in Indian, Thai, South African and Middle Eastern cuisine.

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• Use in all types of curries, pickles, chutneys and sauces.
• Sprinkle over fresh salads.
• Use to flavour soups, carrot and coriander is quite popular.
• Use to flavour home-made bread, waffles and scones.
• Coriander is used as an ingredient for some cakes and biscuits including gingerbread.
• Use to add flavour to creamed cheese or mayonnaise.
• Use to garnish meat, fish or vegetable dishes.
• Use in meatballs, meat or vegetable burgers and other home-made dishes.
• Add to stocks and gravies.
• Use in marinades, particularly for meat and fish.
• Coriander goes very well with mushrooms.
• Use to spice up stir-fries and bland vegetables such as spinach.

Herbs in pots - Parsley

Ink and watercolour sketch in watercolour sketch pad.

Having herbs in terracotta pots on your kitchen windowsill is an excellent way of always having fresh herbs handy for your cooking.
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It’s easy to write parsley off. Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is just the requisite garnish that decorates plates at fancy restaurants. Right? Wrong! Parsley is a popular culinary and medicinal herb recognized as one of the functional food for its unique antioxidants, and disease preventing properties.

Sunshine in the rain

W&N watercolour on Arches 300gsm

On cold and rainy days I sometimes feel I just HAVE to brighten up the day with something smiling! Not that I don’t smile during rainy weather, I love it! and sunflowers are the perfect flower to brighten any dark day.

"Flowers have an expression of countenance as much as men and animals. Some seem to smile; some have a sad expression; some are pensive and diffident; others again are plain, honest and upright, like the broad-faced sunflower and the hollyhock."
- Henry Ward Beecher

 

 

Magaliesberg cliffs

Acrylic painting on gessoed un-stretched canvas sheet
Dedicated to all mountain-lovers!

A view of the Magaliesberg cliffs (NorthWest Province, South Africa), one of the few places where the White-backed Vulture still roams freely.

The Magaliesberg are among the oldest mountains in the world, almost 100 times older than Everest. They stretch for 120km from Bronkhorstspruit Dam east of Pretoria to Rustenburg in the west and separate the highveld grasslands to the south from the bushveld savannah in the north.

Sheer quartzite cliffs face south, overlooking a wide valley and a smaller ridge similar in shape and structure to the Magaliesberg.

Tarlton Landscape

 

Acrylic on Giverny 240gsm canvas – a beautiful summer’s day – done on location in Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa

Not far from us a friend has a dam on his smallholding. When we visited, it gave me a chance to try my hand at some Acrylics, no sketching beforehand.

Early-morning Bluegums

 

Acrylic on canvas

The first light of day sweeps across some Bluegums (Eucalyptus trees) in Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa. 

Bluegums play in important part in South Africa’s economy as they provide forage for our threatened honey bee population.

Evening Primrose

Mixed media of W&N watercolour and candle wax on Bockingford 300gsm

I wanna be
the mild fragrance
of an evening primrose
gentle and sweet
beneath your sheet
cluster of petals
which bloom
white blossoms
to wither softly
into your sleep
— unknown

A corner in my garden

Ink sketch and colour wash.

When planning something new in the garden, I often do some quick sketches with notes in my Moleskine Gardening Journal, adding colour just to see what it will look like.

Notes
Put large terracotta pot lying on its side under Tree Fuchsia (Haleria lucida), Plant Echeverias in front, add stepping stones and pebbles.

Elaborate blossoms, in every hue

W&N watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm

 

As I embrace Slumber
the eyes of Night watch over me,
and as I awaken
I stare at the sun,
which is the only eye of the day.
I drink dew for wine, and hearken to
The voices of the birds, and dance
To the rhythmic swaying of the grass.
~ Khalil Gibran