South African artist Hannetjie de Clercq's career
started at the young age of 18 when she held her first exhibition. A unique
talent, Hannetjie's work presents a juxtaposition of emotions; of things
ancient and modern, strongly sensual, sometimes light-hearted and often tinged
with a sense of sadness. Her fascination for the purity of medieval
iconography, interconnected with 20th century technology, social realities and
the ambiguity of surrealism, is obvious.
Hannetjie's preferred media is tempera and oil on canvas. Her inspiration for
technique is found in the frescoes and icons of the middle ages, especially
Giotto’s body of work. Hannetjie believes that an over explanation of her
art would render it impotent and therefore does not title her artwork. For
her, the beauty of art is in the interaction of the viewer's own subjective
personal interpretation with each individual painting.
Hannetjie de Clercq has been acknowledged as one of South Africa’s top
artists by SASOL, where her work forms part of the impressive SASOL Art
Collection.
The following artworks are a representation of the Artist's body of work. A wider
selection
is available for viewing at Afrikana Gallery in South Melbourne. |
