Fly Fisherman Oil on canvas 20cmx30cm I used a light application of translucent Raw Sienna (Winsor&Newton) to add depth to the water, before adding the light ripples to complete the painting. Rillettes de Canard. Delicious. Served with Steenberg MCC, and Pinot Noir. Perfect. Rillettes (Ree-Etts) in which seasoned cooked meat, or fish, is shredded and combined with fat into a soft pate. Served at room temperature, spread
The. ‘Flex’ on the large canvas giving me a headache trying to keep the rows and columns straight, as the recycled plastic water bottle butterfly artwork ‘Lotus’ heads towards the midpoint. Humbling that a collector was so engaged with my art. ‘I am so proud to be an owner of one of your art pieces.’ Rain. Marie Claude’s anchovy dressing for the Caesar salad. Cream, that
‘Plett Dreaming’Oil on canvas 100cmx100cm Beach walk. Or rather, dog play. Colours of the sea, incredible, with small fish playing in the waves. Gave me the chance to reflect on my seascape painting, and sort a few things with the waves that were bothering me Thunder driving Prince to distraction. A new ‘hide’ option from Heather that we will look at. For now, my cold,
‘Dancer’ Oil on Italian linen (35cmx50cm) Increased the tonal contrast of the painting, strengthening the white areas and saturating some of the black bits. Trying hard not to overwork the painting or loose the spontaneous mark-making. Came across a painting I didn’t recall doing a few years ago of Wild Peacock (60cmx60cm), our fabulous deli in Stellenbosch. It’s painted in oil on a cotton canvas
Detail of ‘Rhenosterveld’ in progress. 100cmx100cm. Acrylic and recycled plastic water bottle butterflies on canvas. We are watching, with a touch of alarm, the spike in Covid cases along the Garden Route. Of more concern are the number of people who we know who are infected. So far, while they are ill, they are recovering. My blood sugars. For whatever reason, out of kilter. I
Star Jasmin ball with recycled water bottle butterflies Recycled plastic water bottle butterflies in the jasmin-ball pot coming into spring leaf. The next mobile test progressing with a brass backbone. Epoxy to hold the butterflies, a slow Responsible for integrated health HIV/AIDS and TB humanitarian programs In Botswana and Tanzania, I painted the start of the Serengeti migration. My painting, the backdrop for the
Painting demonstration, streamed live, a fantastic opportunity to be part of the Virtual Knysna Oyster Festival, with an estimated audience of 450,000 on various social media platforms. The cheetah cubs painting coming alive during the process of smearing paint about. 100 days of lock-down, 10km run. Probably not the cleverest idea to head out on Knysna Forest Marathon day. Even if I kept to
‘Rain Day’, 60cmx50cm. Khartoum, Sudan. Children reveling in the uniqueness of a rain shower. I wanted to capture the happiness of celebrating the small stuff. Particularly at this time of disquiet and upheaval. The acrylic for the dark background, frustrating. Dull and lifeless. My worst! Shoulder trashed slicing chocolate for a Tarte au Chocolat, https://janraats.com/tarte-au-chocolat/ something I haven’t done since I smashed my collar-bone. The texture,
Thrilled that my painting ‘Hold the Open Heart’ was selected as a Finalist, from 1,356 entries at the international online ‘Art in Isolation’ Exhibition. A special painting at this crazy time. Heading out for my run, with the sounds of the pounding sea. Mouthwatering smell of freshly baked bread across the town as more places open. Sadly, not for me. Final assignment submitted for the
Hot-cross buns, an Easter staple now an option, even with my diabetic dietary constraints. The fluffy Keto version from gnom-gnom might be a mission to make, but they are delicious. Incredibly, I found all the bits even with the lockdown supply chain disruptions. The cross bit, far too sweet, and unnecessary as I wasn't going to share it with anyone. Important if you