Cape Town Creatives

Image by Steve Crane via Flickr - The symbol of the lighthouse is part of CTC's culture

I came upon a fan page on Facebook this morning that grabbed my attention.
Mostly what I noticed was how you could watch their fan base grow in front of your eyes. I would love to do that?

I looked deeper and discovered their website and blog.
Their website is wonderfully designed, clear, well laid out.

Also it's filled with useful and interesting information, like The Best of Cape Town's:
Coffee Spots, Shopping, Restaurants, Getaways, Sight-seeing spots, Books, Films & Music

They feature a long list of 'creatives' under these categories:
Animators
Architects
Artists
Ceramicists
Crafters
Fashion and Accessory designers
Furniture designers
Graphic designers
Homeware designers
Illustrators and Cartoonists
Jewellery designers
Landscape designers
Lighting designers
Photographers
Printmakers
Sculptors
Web designers

I'll definitely be keeping an eye on their blog and will be adding it to my blog roll immediately.

Joanna Pawelczyk

...is taking part in the Walk of Art Festival. She was one of the first to sign up and she is clearly committed. I asked her to give me some ideas about herself and her art and so she wrote the following short biography. I have printed it exactly the way she wrote it because I love the purity of her writing. I think it tells us alot about Joanna. Read to the end because the last line is the best!

My name is Joanna Pawelczyk and I am 22 years old. I was born in Poland but my family moved to Durban when I was 6 years old, where I attended school up to matric and started studying fine art at UKZN in Pietermaritzburg in 2006. In 2007 I received a scholarship at UKZN to go on exchange for a semester to Japan. In 2008 I moved to Cape Town, taking a gap year, and this year I have recommenced my studies of fine art at UCT.

My passion for art started at about the age of 3 when I went around the house drawing on walls and furniture and cutting shapes out of duvet covers because I thought they were interesting. At the age of 5 my mom enrolled me in art classes in Poland, every week fighting to get an obstinate 5 year old to go to class but fighting even more to get me to leave.

Since that young age my love for art has been firmly rooted in my personality and my talent has grown and developed over the years as I took art all the way through school until matric. When I matriculated there was no hesitation or confusion as to what I was going to study – it didn’t even need consideration.

Most important to the development of my talent were the oil painting classes I began to take when I was 14 years old and carried through until I moved to Pietermaritzburg to study. After being subjected to the rigidity and demands of school art, which can be tiresome, the oil painting classes reinstated my belief that art should be produced for oneself and not to please anyone else. The experience of painting for me has several variations – sometime it can be relaxing, sometimes harrowing and sometimes something akin to trance-like effect, but whatever the emotion felt I know for sure that it is something I will do for the rest of my life.

My technique of choice is oil painting, although I do also love photography. What inspires me and my subject matter is simply the world around me. There is so much inspiration to be found in the simple things that surround us, and also the rich and beautiful experiences found further afield in our diverse country. I love painting people, portraits and figures because I think the human body is one of the most beautiful constructions on this earth, and there is something special and remarkable to be found in everyone.

Recently I have been experimenting with different styles of painting, diverging from my usual photorealistic style, trying more abstract or impressionist techniques sometimes combined with photorealism. I don’t believe I have a “style” of painting as am I discovering new things about myself and my art everyday and my style develops and changes constantly.

I have not exhibited my art because I always felt that I need to have a degree or something legitimizing me as an “artist” but I have come to realise that life is too short to wait for someone to tell you that you are good at something or that you deserve it, you just have to prove it to yourself and then others will see it too. This is something I hope to do from now on, with my first step being the Walk of Art festival.


(Note – the artworks submitted for the festival and those that will be exhibited were not produced for tuition purposes at either the University of KwaZulu-Natal or the University of Cape Town)

Virginia Clarke

... was born in 1968 in Cape Town. Painting is her passion and she is a self-taught artist with no formal art training. Originally an educator by profession, she is now a home executive with the means and time to pursue her passion.

Matisse is her inspiration and favourite art master. Art to her signifies the simplistic manipulation of shape and form and the use of bold colour to enhance it. By occasionally adding an element of duality, the work reminds the observer that Art, as in Life, is not always what it seems. There is always a deeper meaning or alternate view. Her style can be labelled as playful and modern. She categorizes all her works into one of the following areas – Mind, Body, Spirit.

Michele Batchelder....

...works in oils on canvas. She will be showing her paintings at the Walk of Art Festival 2009.
Keep and eye out for a post on Michele in the near future.

It's who I am...

Bridgette Allan is one of the artists that will be showing her work at the Walk of Art
Festival in November.

She was born in Johannesburg, South Africa but lived in Europe at a young age, where she learnt an appreciation for Art, Music and Dance. This appreciation led her to study art at school, but she abandoned the idea of being an artist, for a more lucrative career.

On settling in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, she found her passion for art rekindled the makings of a painter began. When asked to describe her relationship with her art, Bridgette says: "Painting is not a job, it is not a hobby, nor is it just something I do. Painting is an extension of who I am. It is the way I describe my emotions, my thoughts, my days. My hopes are contained in the colours and the form my brush strokes make . The paintings may take the shape of a flower study or a landscape or a nude but even the very slightest smudge of colour is applied with with passion and a fascination for the effect that it creates on the blank canvas."


Although Bridgette has experimented with other media, she has found that the quick drying property of acrylics, suit her style of painting perfectly.
Her paintings are bold and dramatic and the theme is dominated by the female nude, which is her trademark, although she varies her subject matter to include bright florals that have significant tonal contrasts.

Her latest series of work, which is pictured here, was inspired by a Leonard Cohen song, Dance Me To The End Of Love. The first one is: Dance Me To The End Of Love, the second is: Dance Me Very Tenderly and the third is: Intimacy.

Bridgette has sold her work throughout South Africa via art dealers, galleries and online galleries where her work has found new homes abroad. She has had a number of solo exhibitions and is a regular exhibitor at Nashua Art in The Park, Pietermaritzburg.

We look forward to having her at the Walk of Art Festival 2009 and celebrating her creativity with her.

Going Live...

Our new website went live this afternoon.

The website is filled with all the information you would need to make a decision about taking part in the Walk of Art Festival 2009 as an artist.Our new stand options are detailed along with prices. We have additional good news in that we can now accept credit cards for stand payments.

Opportunities exist for sponsors and stakeholders, interested parties should contact us directly.
Stands only went on sale, late yesterday afternoon and the requests are already pouring in from artists. Wow, things are really hotting up and excitement is building.

Here is a quick look at the new site, but of course you can get a better look by going straight to our website.

New options for Walk of Art

The following is available for Individual Exhibitors

SCULPTORS

• Placement of sculptures throughout the garden
• Stationary including, ID cards, pens
• Free entry to auctions
• Website link to www.walk-of-art.co.za
• Access to credit card facilities

Cost:
R 1 250 (excl VAT)


OPTION 1

• 3 x 3m / ±1.8m height / 9 running meters
• Covered by waterproof Bedouin tent
• One seat, one table
• Stationary including, ID cards, pens
• Means to hang art work for paintings & photographs
• Free entry to auctions
• Website link to www.walk-of-art.co.za
• Access to PR staff to man tent during short absences
• Access to credit card facilities

Cost:
R 3 250 (excl VAT)
Stand a chance to get exhibition stand for free in a lucky draw
Multiple stands attract a discount

OPTION 2

• 3 x 1.5m / ±1.8m height / 6 running meters
• Covered by waterproof Bedouin tent
• One seat, one table
• Stationary including, ID cards, pens
• Means to hang art work for paintings & photographs
• Free entry to auctions
• Website link to www.walk-of-art.co.za
• Access to PR staff to man tent during short absences
• Access to credit card facilities

Cost:
R 2 500 (excl VAT)
Stand a chance to get exhibition stand for free in a lucky draw
Multiple stands attract a discount

OPTION 3

• ±10 Tress with means to hang art work for paintings & photographs
• Easels may be used at your own risk where space allows
• Trees within the hospitality area which is divided into 4 areas (limit to 4)
• Stationary including, ID cards, pens
• Free entry to auctions
• Website link to www.walk-of-art.co.za
• Access to credit card facilities

Cost:
R 1 250 (excl VAT)

We also have options for Retailers of complimentary products. Please enquire.