About
Do what you love
I have painted in all mediums, but watercolour has always been my go-to.
As you can see, watercolour has always been my go-to. These paintings are more than 20 years old and was part of two different series I did while working abroad.
The tiny portrait painting was done in in Taiwan and the size of a business card, and Zanzibar arch and beach scene below is the size of a postcard. It is also at the same time where by work and travel career began. Some things never change.
Why tiny art?
My dad often tinkered in pencil and charcoal. He was a smoker and drew pictures on the back of his Lions matchboxes. I am not sure if that had a subconscious influence on me. What I do know is that there is no space for a large canvas or an easel on our sailboat home and definitely not in my backpack when I go hiking. Smaller formats are the obvious choice.
The story of my #coffeepaintings
The #coffeepaintings project began as a daily exercise during the first 21 days of lockdown. My goal was to paint something every morning in under 5 minutes using whatever was available—leftover coffee, sometimes wine. These mini paintings were shared online, and soon others joined, creating a supportive community.
After 21 days, we organized an auction featuring selected works on my website. Proceeds went to charities, raising nearly R10,000 in 24 hours. This movement also inspired me to open my site to other artists, and we’ve since listed over 100 pieces of art of various mediums and formats.
My coffee paintings have gained international recognition, with pieces completing an around-the-world yacht race in 2023 and being shipped around the globe.
I’ve now launched a dedicated site for the #coffeepaintings, and I’m grateful to everyone who has supported the journey.
Thank you for visiting. Thank you for all the love and support.
Niche
I started a daily painting challenge for myself, using what I and with me: coffee. The aim was to complete a painting a day and allocating just 5min to it every day.
By sharing paintings on social media, more joined and felt inspired - painting everyday, using coffee and then posting it while supporting one another.
Opened my website to other artists, showcasing over 100 pieces, including various mediums like watercolour, photography, and mixed media. At this stage some of it was my own coffeepaintings, but it had listings of photographers, other mediums and formats, even 3D township art. This gave more people the opportunity to show their work and get some sort of income while the world was standing still.
The group of coffeepainters submitted their work and we hosted an auction of selected #coffeepaintings on my website. We raised R10,000 in 2 hours and all proceeds went to charities in dire need due to covid and included feeding schemes and educational support.
Also during lockdown, I started receiving orders. Custom art was a great gift loved ones that were separated due to the pandemic. I would paint a commission, record the process and send it to the lucky receiver in a form of a video. Once the postal services were restored I was able to send the original too. I also received orders for bookcovers, a series of Pirate inspired art for someone in the Caribbean and many more special projects.
One large commission was for the Belmond Hotel group and included a series inspired by their Botswana Lodge and the Okavango Delta. I loved the project. I felt challenged and inspired throughout the process. The real reward was to be invited to a small group exhibition in the Welgemeend Art Gallery (2023) to showcase a selection of the work.
I have new work all the time and is part of an annual group exhibition as well as other smaller shows in Cape Town and my art are on display at various venues. I am currently working on a new series in-between private and commission work.
