In passing

January 2018 Cubicle series at Everard Read/Circa Gallery, Cape Town.

‘In passing’ is a collection of paintings based on photos I’ve taken as I go about my days. On the one hand, they’re snapshots of everyday moments. But they’re also paintings about mortality and a reminder that ‘now’ is all we have, and all we ever have.

The paintings and their metaphorical subject matter are dedicated to the memory of my uncle Jan, who died while I was working on them. The key phrase I remember from him, which seemed to sum up a great approach to life, was ‘Wat ‘n fees!’ (What a feast!). Said with great gusto about anything that was worth sinking one’s teeth into, not just about food.

His passing was also a foreshadowing of my own experience with cancer three years later.