Domestic Trio

I think I could have sat in my car and sketched these three, they were so engrossed in their conversation. Legs all stretched out to the left of each other, they could hardly be closer together. The colours look improbably bright, but are part of what I want to capture - I love the gaiety of some of these little groups scattered around the city. The grass looks rather a livid green, perhaps I should tone it down a bit, but after weeks of rain, the lawns have all sprouted into emerald glory (appropriate for our winning of the rugby World Cup a couple of weeks ago!)

Joburg Streets

I have been working on what I think will be a series, of Jo'burg's domestic workers (ie. maids, nannies and housekeepers) during their leisure moments. These women seem to gather quite randomly and spontaneously on pavements and grass verges, in the shade if it's hot, or in the sun if it's cool, and talk and laugh and have a rich community life right on our suburban doorsteps. Secluded behind high walls, and isolated in my little studio, I sometimes feel quite envious of the ready availability of companion and friendship - though of course I am very aware of the privilege of being able to paint in my studio while someone else takes care of the ironing.
The paintings are small - just 25x25 cm - and I try to gather reference photos surreptitiously so noone is self-conscious or poses for the camera. I would like to draw them from life, but am sure that would cause consternation!

The weavers

More garden birds - the little weavers that return every spring to begin their exacting task of building a nest above our swimming pool. Like flying daffodils, the male frantically strips branches bare, collects strands of grass, bamboo, palm and yucca leaves, laboriously constructs the pendulous globes on the thinnest of twiggy branches, only to have them bossily rejected by his drab little mate. He then dismantles the whole affair and begins again - over and over and over until she finally gives the nod.
This year they have built them quite low down in the trees, which apparently means there won't be a very wet rainy season - no danger of floods. So far we've had weeks of wet overcast rainy weather. Hopefully they know something we don't, and the sun will be coming out soon!

Teapot and sweetpeas

I've deduced, I think, why it's been so hard to keep a sketchblog going when my painting is going quite well - I guess it's obvious... firstly there is not enough time, and also when one is spending six or seven hours a day in the studio, there's not much interesting to put in the sketchbook, of course. So here is a little painting I did a couple of weeks ago, to try and get my hand into gear again - my little brown teapot and the last of the sweetpeas. They are in a tiny little salt cellar, that's why they look so big, and the teapot is small too. The handle looks very wonky, but I am quite pleased with the shadows and reflected light in the foreground - some of which happened by happy accident.

Grey loeries

Some doodles from my layout pad - thin paper that I have no inhibitions about messing up on and can run riot with strange thoughts and ideas! I don't know why the ugly laughing mouth but the birds are the comical grey loeries that were bobbing around the newly budding jacaranda tree in our garden. They are also known as kwê-voëls (Afrikaans) or Go-away birds due to the noise they make... g'wayyy or kwê... In the bush, their natural habitat they actually seem to warn herds of buck about predators approaching, but here in our suburban garden, they taunt our hapless dog when he wanders out into their domain. How he would love to fly...

Some of the family

Right. Must Do Better. I have not been sketching and journalling (but I have been painting and cleaning my house). Here are two oldish pages from my journal of my son Ali, and my eldest daughter Dominique, and one I did today (hooray) of my husband in his Saturday position - after he has made breakfast, done the shopping and fixed the pool of course. He is a good man!

Royal Zambezi

I decided to expand this to a family affair by posting my daughter Alexandra's gouache sketches she made while on holiday in Zambia last month. Bruce and I were there two years ago, and I'm ashamed to say it didn't even occur to me to take a sketchbook! The gorgeous no-comforts-barred lodge http://www.royalzambezilodge.com/index2.php belongs to my brother-in-law and sister, who've invited us to share some of their holidays there... wildlife literally roam right through the camp at night - you need to stay in your bungalow (picture on the left) so as not to bump into a hippo or an ellie on a midnight stroll! Incredible and abundant birdlife, and the gasping and grunting of hippos wake you up in the morning... just wilderness bliss.
At top right is the wonderful 'sausage tree' of enormous girth, that hosts the pub and it's viewing deck. The vertical squiggles are of the striking maroon and yellow flower bracts that then produce huge bizarre-looking sausage shaped fruit - according to Palgraves 'Trees of Southern Africa', used by indigenous people for purposes ranging from curing syphilis and rheumatism to a poultice for making babies fat!
The crocodile drawing is of a wooden carving, but there are plenty of real crocs lurking on the banks of the river. They certainly keep still enough to draw from, if you don't alarm them into sliding into the water, which in turn alarms you if you're sitting in a canoe with your sketchbook!