The Serene and the Restless

Enjoy Langebaan with me for the next few weeks, the tiny town on the banks of the large Langebaan Lagoon, a calm spell of water 17 km long, ± 4 km wide. Langebaan in the early 20th century was mainly a whaling station, until, of course, man belatedly changed his ways. Slowly, but ever so slowly, the whales, now protected and appreciated, are returning and we have spotted a few along the West Coast for the last couple of years, and a great thrill it was!Langebaan Lagoon is part of the protected area of the West Coast National Park and offers excellent sailing conditions as it is protected from the deep sea!! If you approach it from the reserve side by

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Coral Garden (2009) - Coral Reef Series

Size: 71 cm W x 35.5cm H x 3.5cm DCompleted today!!! I'm in the middle of relocating house...but am keeping my sanity with a few smaller paintings before getting settled. They've been selling well on eBay too!!! YAY!!!This acrylic painting is constructed of coloured dots approximately 1mm in diameter.Click on top (main) image for an even larger view! Below are some close-ups!

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Lime Kiln at Yzerfontein

Before taking the R27 northwards along the West Coast, I crossed the road to inspect the lime kiln on the way to Yzerfontein. This one is a National Monument, well cared for by a caretaker whose cottage lies just behind it. Motorists may stop and enter the enclosure to see a close-up of one of the most important contributions to civilisation. I did not know this myself, but in Morgan’s Run by Colleen McCullough, (a book I have mentioned on this blog before), it is well explained: when a settlement starts, there are usually only wooden structures, and only if people could get hold of cement, could they start rising a town with proper buildings.350 Year

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Lilies of the Field

I am leaving Darling now to start exploring the rest of the West Coast. After all, you must have started wondering about the abscence of the ocean and the boats!After the recent heavy rains the fields and valleys between Darling and Yzerfontein are green, and great clumps of arum lilies have opened along both sides of the road, the pure white flowers peeping out behind large arrow-shaped leaves. The rainfall here is limited to winters so that between April and September we may have from 125mm to 350mm of rain. No wonder the West Coast area of roughly 4400 km sq is the habitat of 1200 species of flowering plants. The arum lilies, Zantedescia aethiopica

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Brownies, Anybody?

There are quite a number of homes in Darling with the traditional attic with an outside staircase. I knew I had to paint one of them for the blogspot and also hoped I could stumble upon a good ‘attic story’. The old South African farmhouses with attics were the stuff of legends, because the older Afrikaner people kept their coffins in the attic ready for their burial one day. Not to waste such a strong container, they would keep their surplus dried peaches in it, until the coffin was needed. My husband readily agreed when I decided to paint Simoné’s Restaurant with their outside staircase. I know why: he is absolutely addicted to coffee-and-dessert at

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Coral Ribbons (2009) - Coral Reef Series

Size: 60.5cm W x 30.5cm H x 3.5cm DI completed this on the 1st June then went on holiday. So I'm a bit delayed in posting it...sorry :( I've been wanting to do some more panorama's - and I felt some doing some more corals after all the waterlilies. I am probably more fascinated with coral than any other subject matter and probably will be for some time. I am also trasfixed with the quality of light light and its movement through the ocena water. My partner says to just keep painting as many as I feel like painting, because when I've had enough of them there won't be any more....Probably a wise philosophy. Anyway, holiday was good and feel inspired

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Darling's Aunt

The passenger trains could drop you right into the heart of Darling in the old days. Today the station building has been transformed into an entertainment centre with theatre, restaurant, museum-with-a-difference and a shop with locally produced gifts for sale. The pink building is known as Evita se Perron (a multiple pun in the name) as this is where Darling's favourite aunt, Tannie Evita Bezuidenhout, holds court when not touring the world with satirical shows. Her tongue is smooth and sweet and sharp as a Samurai sword....(May I just mention here that although Afrikaans-sounding, perron, a synonym for platform, is a proper English word in the Oxfor

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The Legend of Lelieblom Farm

(With apologies to Hans Christian Anderson, the Brothers Grimm and Paulo Coelho)“Once upon a time there was a large old shed.The shed had saddles and bridles on its walls and crumbling paint which looked nicer than the most expensive paint techniques. But the shed was lonely.Some walls went up, beloved and well-used antique furniture and carpets moved in and the shed became a homestead. But the shed- homestead was still lonely.Tables laden with beautiful cloths, crockey and cutlery moved in. And from the kitchen came the sound of planning and cooking and the lovely flavours of food filled the atmosphere. Lots of people started to negotiate the dirt ro

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About Real and Ornamental Vines

South Africa's vineyards are mostly situated in the Western Cape. Yup, we have it all! What was previously known as Mamreweg Co-operative is now known as Darling Cellars, popular for their Shiraz and Merlot and some exotic blends. A very large complex is being planned on the grounds, but at the moment the visitors centre and tasting room can be found in this very charming and homely building.The pergola is covered with the ornamental gravevine, Vitis Vinefera, which shows a burst of autumn colours throughout the year. Leaves will drop down continiously but because of the beauty of the plant this could never be considered a nuisance. The abundant colon

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