Hats hats hats

I was planning to go out and sketch - perhaps try my hand at some buildings - eek! - when my attention was diverted (this happens a lot) by the Opening of Parliament ceremony on TV, and especially by the Fabulous Hats milling around in the Cape Town sunshine -
I would have liked to be there. I sketched these while the President was talking and the cameras were roaming around - sometimes putting the TV on 'pause' to capture a particularly fetching creation. I would like to wear one of these hats - but where? And would I have the gumption? I know at least one of my sisters does... ;-)

Helen Zille, leader of one of the opposition parties - referred to in some circles as 'Godzilla' because of her tenacious and fearsome qualities - didn't wear a hat. This was her being interviewed after proceedings. It would have been difficult to be as forthright from underneath a big
confection.

To market, to market

On Saturday BFG and I went to the Irene Village market, which is held twice a month in the grounds of Jan Smuts House near Pretoria. We heard you have to get there early before the good stuff is sold out, so we arrived at about 9.00am - very cold and frosty, and there was already a queue to buy the enormous fresh farm eggs.

Everyone was wrapped up warmly to begin with, but layers were discarded as the sun rose. I took all my sketching stuff, but the market was so sprawling and busy, and so much to look at, I'm afraid I did these later at home, from my digital pics... next time I will take a folding chair and find a place to park myself. There were so many real characters to people-watch...

like Elsie in her huge homemade hat selling the fluffy cotton rugs that she and her workers weave on her smallholding, where she says the owls warn her if there are any intruders on the prowl - they stop their constant grinding, chattering and hooting and become very quiet!

These musicians were selling their bamboo pipe-organs (is that what they're called?) and making a joyful noise. There was also a string quartet in the tea-garden, camel rides for kids, antiques, arts & crafts - and the corrugated iron house of General Smuts which was very moving in it's restored simplicity and historical significance.

Hats and rainbow falls

At last I've painted this scene from a Bergerac street from a photo I took two years ago - I just loved the display of saccharine colours and the way the hats and scarves almost seemed to be marching down the street. I nearly overworked it - did in fact, in some spots - but managed to control myself. This is watercolour on cold press aquarelle block - 55 x 46 cm

A reversal of the hats and 'falls' - an oil painting I did a couple of years ago, and which should have winged it's way to it's new home in Australia by now, but hasn't yet (sorry V & P!) due to logistical problems - it's big!.. 101 x 76 cm on stretched canvas. I do apologise to the hat-wearers for some unflattering renderings - I wasn't really trying for strong likenesses, but for a moment in time in front of the timeless Victoria Falls (this was taken from the Zambian side, so a less conventional view as has been remarked on by some).