Featured Paintings for January 2008

In late September 2004, I went on a two-week safari trip to Zambia with our friends Ilse Mwanza and Burke Dillon.  After Zambia, Ilse went on to a solo road trip to Mozambique while Burke and I proceeded to a 10-day fly-in safari trip in Namibia.  The whole month was crammed with wonderful experiences including visual delights which inspired the following paintings.

Face in the Grass

Oil on Canvas, 18" x 24" (NA)

I met the little Zambian girl pictured above in a village near the exit from South Luangwa National Park.  We were stopped by the guards so I was standing in our open-top landcruiser looking around the village when a group of children gingerly approached, staring at our group.  I waved to the little girl (the "leader of the pack"), handed her some granola bars, and gestured to share them with her playmates which she did.  Then, she broke into a run and went behind the dried grass fence in front of a big tree, just a few meters away from our truck and peered at me.  Quickly, I took a photo of her and voila!  A painting was born!

At the Village Pump

Oil on Linen, 20" x 16"

This scene was based on a photo I took during the same trip to Zambia, when we visited Nyamphande, our friend Jacob Mwanza's village.  The women, along with the young girl, were fetching water from the artesian well which Jacob had donated to his village.  The colors of their clothes and water containers were so stunning I just knew the scene would look just as beautiful on the canvas.

Namibian Sky

Oil on Canvas, 24" x 30"

Desert Sundown

Oil on Canvas, 24" x 30" (NA)

Although I've tried, the two paintings directly above can not do justice to the splendor of the sunsets in the Namibian desert.  The darkness of the surroundings showcases the dazzling colors of the seemingly endless desert sky.