I’ve been offline for almost all of December while visiting the Western Cape region of South Africa; a special place that was once my home. One purpose of our trip was to attend an important family celebration. But it was also an opportunity to enjoy a much-needed break, visit with longstanding friends from student and early career days and, of course, reacquaint myself with the abundant, spectacular plant life.
Now, as we prepare to return home from a trip that has revitalized us in so many ways, I’m particularly pleased, from a botanical art perspective, to have connected with a number of South African botanical artists and a huge variety of flora that was once so familiar to me. Being invited by the Grootbos Foundation to spend a few days working on their Florilegium project was a highlight of our trip and more than made up for the disappointment I experienced when I couldn’t attend during the COVID pandemic. The fynbos-centric preservation and propagation project and the incredible artists (both local and international) have inspired me with a renewed zest for botanical art.
One of the key propagation factors in the fynbos world is the inevitability of bush fires. Fire is the trigger for new life in the protea family. On a hike into a fynbos-rich setting with knowledgeable companions, I saw evidence of charred clumps with vibrant colour bursting forth from within or around it, as you can see in the image above.
Let’s take a cue from the way proteas burst into new life after a fire to resolve to “burst forth” with renewed vigour in our art in the new year.
Happy New Year.