Based in Cape Town, Heidi Salzwedel is a practising artist and an art and design educator. She obtained a Fine Arts degree through Rhodes University, Makhanda (2009) and her MA degree through Stellenbosch University (2015). Her time is spent juggling a number of passions: art, teaching, writing, research and developing community. Currently she, along with others, is connecting artists in Cape Town as part of KRUX. She has exhibited internationally and locally with 40 Stones, a faith-based visual arts collective/network.
Inspired by a dream while in the Netherlands on an art residency, these artworks by Heidi deal with place, history and spirituality through the lens of two towns that share the same name: the tourist town of Delft in Holland and the notoriously dangerous Delft in the Western Cape, South Africa.
Delve/Delft is a body of work/exhibition which shows place; while they appear on the surface to stand on opposite ends of a spectrum socially, politically and geographically, Heidi uses the metaphor of water to ask questions about the imminent proximity of spiritual fulfillment in both. To see the full exhibition, visit the exhibition online HERE.
We All Fall Down is reminiscent of the game of Jenga, involving the imminent process of playing until the structure falls down. The interactive cement Jenga sets at the centre of the exhibition reflect the water level rising within the buildings depicted in other artworks: Delft I and II. The imminent rise of water (spiritual fulfillment) within a man-made structure causes these structures and paradigms to fall.
Melusi Dlamini’s painting journey began in 2014 when he enrolled in a specialised art college, Pro Arte Alphen Park. This is where he was introduced to painting for the first time. Initially he admittedly struggled with the medium, and was convinced that he wouldn’t move forward. He was ready to give up and it was at this point that his art teacher redirected his focus. She made him aware that he had the gift but that it just needed more time. Getting a few steps closer to mastering the craft would involve time and commitment. He decided to listen to her and stay; to give it more time. He gave the craft more focused attention and this resulted in instant progress every week. His works later went on to feature in local community gatherings and the State Theatre in Pretoria. In 2019 he enrolled in the Michaelis School of Fine Art at the University of Cape Town. He is currently majoring in painting and is in his third year of study.
“The subject matter of my paintings is predominantly landscapes and seascapes. This inspiration comes from an ongoing obsession with light and how it reflects on outdoor surfaces. Deep down at its core, my studio practice is about bringing into awareness the magnificent creative work of God. Outdoor tones and refracted light have a lot of scriptural symbolism; they all point to God, the creative genius behind it all. My art aims to be an expression of exactly that – God’s created world. Jesus often used metaphors that the world would understand in the form of parables, to tell a story with a heavenly meaning. I hope my paintings serve as a form of visual parable, which may make people wonder, and remember His heavenly meanings too.”
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