My first art teacher was a bit ditzy and loved to paint pretty. She taught me many short cuts and how to mix colours, blend and paint wet on wet. I sold a lot of my work during this time and was mostly drawn to landscapes. Most of my inspiration came from my own photography.
It was on a trip to visit family in Port Elizabeth that I met the next-door neighbour, Professor Gregory Kerr. My Aunt showed him some of my work and he invited me to join his workshops. I did a one-year course with him which was mostly online with four class workshops in that period. I was completely lost and felt like a fraud. Greg persisted with me and his other students, mostly professional artists and art teachers, saw my struggle and helped me. By the end of the year I got the hang on the terminology and how to really paint in oils. I exhibited a few paintings and continued to get commissions. To show my progress look at the difference between these two paintings:
I joined Greg’s class the following year again and took delight in learning the true vision of creating. The more you know, the more critical you become of your work and it is difficult to just be. But then came Tragedy and I lost my brush for the next three and a half years. ….