CONTENTS
Page One:
Adri and Cassie Pretorius: On a Lifelong Safari Together
Page Two:
Peni and Lee Powell: Displaying Their Flemish Art Collection
Page Three:
Introducing New IAPA Members:
- Stefano Bonfatti: Photorealism
- Pierre Doré: Decorative Interpretations
- Lestat de Lioncourt: Fantasy
News from Old Friends:
- Michael Janson: Who's Who in Russia
- Houba: New Works for Two Exhibits in 2003
- Dino: Featured in an Interior Design Magazine
- Alejandro and Gabriela: New Horizons for Another Great Couple
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Pair of Black Rhinoceros |
The husband-and-wife team of pyrographic artists, Casper ("Cassie") and Adri Pretorius are both from the
Kalahari Region of
South Africa--"born and bred there of families that have been there
for generations." They have been working together for about eight
years, ever since they met when Cassie, who has been involved in this
art form for more than 23 years, introduced Adri to it.
The leather pyroengraving above is of a pair of black
rhinos by Cassie. Rhinos and elephants are his favorite subjects,
according
to Adri. "He has a stronger hand than I have," she says,
"and does really well
on the loud contrasts of the rough-skinned animals. He also enjoys
working on wood."
Cassie is a self-taught artist. His interest in pyrography was first
sparked in a woodworking class in high school. In the early 1970's, he
attended a national trade fair in Johannesburg where he saw a Namibian
artist burning on leather, and another spark of interest was ignited.
Adri, who studied art, was mainly working in acrylic paints when she met
Cassie. Having never been exposed to pyrographic art, she had never
even considered using heat to create art until she met him.
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Hippopotamus |
It is not an easy thing for a couple to work together in the same
business,
especially in a tenuous business like selling their own art. In most
families, where one spouse is an artist, the family income is usually
sustained with the income of a spouse with a regular paycheck. Often in
such cases,
the artist is free to dedicate himself or herself exclusively to art
because the spouse not only
lends moral and financial support but serves as business manager for the
artist as well.
Cassie and Adri, along with couples featured on the virtual pages of WOM
in the past, such as José and Enith Pelegrina, Alejandro
Veneziani and his
wife Gabriela Lezcano (see page 3 of this issue for an update on them),
and Linda and Opie O'Brien, are to be admired all for their
determination, perseverance, and spunk.
The SAFARI theme is an easy choice for artists in South Africa like
Cassie and Adri. The safari look is popular with tourists, and the
handsome pieces look wonderful on the walls of South African game lodges
and farms, as well as on the walls of hunting lodges in European
décor.
Adri says, "We work very well together--acting as critic for each
other's works and we use each other as a sounding board for things like
composition and lay-out. It works out pretty well, because we can both
spot each other's mistakes and quite often work on bits of each other's
work to bring out or hide certain things. We also co-operate on the
larger scaled works--one does the animal and the other does the
background."
"Cassie is a lot better business person than I am. If it weren't
for him," she adds with a wink, "I guess I would end up giving
my stuff away."
Together, the intrepid pair traveled Africa south of the Equator fairly extensively for some years, and even stayed in Zimbabwe for a few of those years. They worked in pyrography there and exhibited at fairs and international trade shows around the country.
|
In Memory of a Beloved Elephant |
The elephant (above), Cassie recounts, "is a commissioned piece
done for a game park owner when one of his ele's died. The artwork
was done on the (leather) elephant ear (the ear of the elephant that had
died) as a memorial. (The ear was about 5 feet 6 inches
tall.)"
Knowing that everyone is fascinated with elephants, I asked them to tell
me more about the elephants they've encountered in their work and
travels. They say that Elephant Camp Safaris near Victoria Falls in
Zimbabwe
allow visitors to ride a few bush trails on the backs of tame African
elephants.
Cassie and Adri, however, prefer to rough it on their own photo
safaris, and often camp in tents in the wild. They explained that wild
elephants are so quiet you can be within a few feet of a herd in the
bush and not even be aware of them until their stomachs rumble! In
Cassie's case, there is another signal: being near elephants makes him
sneeze!
|
Cassie and Adri Pretorius Working
Together |
Tools and supplies. Cassie and Adri work primarily with a
40-Watt Weller iron with a tip filed to a chisel and without benefit of
temperature control. The unusually long metal tip (as can be observed
in the picture above) means the artist's hand is very far from the work
when he or she is burning.
They acquired a wire-tipped, temperature-controlled pyro tool, but
quickly went back to their familiar "old Weller" for the bulk
of their works. The wire-tipped tool comes in handy for works with
lettering and works on smaller than their usual scale.
A china marker (also called a grease pencil or wax pencil) is used for
lightly sketching the design and layout on the leather before burning,
and an ArtGum eraser is
effective for removing those lines later. When they work on leather,
they use a
sanding block to clean the burner tip. There is a larger carbon
build-up on the burner tip compared to burning on wood. The main
difference between burning on
wood and leather is that some mistakes can be sanded away on the wood.
Leather is not as forgiving and leaves no room for error.
Cassie is an accomplished woodworker who along with his other projects
makes the rustic style frames for their
leather pieces.
Color. The range of colors in most of the couple's work is
solely the result of heat reactions and the angle and attitude of the
burning tool. On the rare occasion when they do use color, it is done
by adding acrylic washes on the
leather or by using colored pencils on the paper.
Sizes. The smallest pieces they've worked on have been about a
square
foot in size. Average pieces for them range around 4 feet. The
elephant
ears--at 5-1/2 ft tall--are the largest pieces they've done.
Leather considerations. Cassie and Adri use only high-grade,
vegetable-tanned hides (also called oak-tanned or harness leather).
They generally use cowhide (with the notable exceptions of game skins
and elephant ears, as seen in two examples above). They avoid using the
shoulders, which have "lines on them caused by the way the skin
fits around the cow." They prefer instead the sides, which are
"best for burning on since they are nice and clear of scratches,
wrinkles, and brands."
Adri explains that the thickness of leather is gauged in pound
increments: the higher the number, the thicker the leather. She says,
"We regularly use 5-6 or 6-7 weight leather (anything thinner, that
is, under a 5 weight, would curl when we burn on it)." Keep in
mind that Cassie and Adri work on very large subjects and leather
pieces; furthermore, they do NOT work with a temperature-controlled
tool, which might give them more options in this regard.
Adri advises "Stretching the leather might cause the burnt areas on
a picture to crack. The weights of leather we use for our works are
still flexible enough to be strung to a frame. The thongs we use for
that get cut from the leftover pieces of leather. They are strong
enough to handle some tension but still thin enough to be
flexible."
Giraffe |
|
The New World. About five years ago, our intrepid pair decided
to venture forth once
more--this time beyond their beloved continent to see what life was like
across the Atlantic. They are now making the United States their home
and have been living in the small town of Pine Mountain in the State of
Georgia, about an hour south of bustling Atlanta.
The lush green vegetation and forests of Georgia are in marked contrast
to the arid climates--including the Kalahari Desert!--that they had
left behind. They settled into their peaceful little town and
started a business of manufacturing and installing granite and marble
counter tops and tiles in order to make a living, while on the side
trying to establish an art market for their leather burnings.
In the early days while they were traveling and visiting in California,
they
participated in a couple of "Art in the Park" exhibitions in
Morro Bay. Adri recounted that
consensus among the artsy establishment was that their pyrography was an
overpriced craft rather
than an attempt at producing fine art. The same sentiment was prevalent
in Africa--and their works were constantly referred to as curios. Not a
very
encouraging reaction, to say the least. They believe this sentiment is
mainly because people are not used to pyrography as an art technique; it
is something that Cassie and Adri try to rectify every time they have an
exhibition.
Experimenting on paper. They joined IAPA and were inspired by
the creativity and originality of the group's members. They decided to
try things some of the other members were doing, and produced some very
successful
works on paper--two of which are shown here.
Trying a favorite North American animal. They have found America
to be a rich source of images and subjects ideally suited to
pyrography. The wolf is a favorite subject of people commissioning
works from the couple, but Adri's favorite North American subject yet
was a portrait of an Indian chief, done for a client in California.
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Wolf, detail |
|
Rottweiler, detail |
As this article goes to press, our adventurous pair has once more
bravely sallied forth in search of their niche in the art world. They
have recently sold their house and counter-top business in Georgia and
plan to settle in Florida where they have bought a ranch near Cedar
Key.
They are very enthused about the future. Adri says that their neighbors
have cows, and that their own ranch has
woods on one side, lots of trees all around, and horses in back.
From now on, their art work will reflect their new surroundings and the
horses
that will be their specialty.
|
Arabian Stallion |
In contrast to their situation in Georgia, where their counter-top
installation business was their primary source of income and their art
work a sideline, in Florida, Cassie and Adri Pretorius plan to once more focus primarily on
their art--including doing a book on burning on leather--in the hope
their art will prove
their principal source of income, and any other activities will
supplement
that.
The art community in the city of Ocala, Florida, only 45 miles east
of their ranch at Cedar Key is already beckoning them. Adri says,
"We feel very alive there."
View more pieces of Adri and Cassie's work on line in the Adri and
Casper Pretorius Salon in the E-Museum of Pyrographic Art.
They have recently acquired a new website address of pyrographer.com where
they will soon be exhibiting their works. For the time being, visit
their
website at www.art-by-fire.com to
see their art work, and don't miss the fascinating bio of their life and
travels. Another site displaying and selling their work is Hunt Art.
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2003, Kathleen M. Garvey Menéndez, all rights reserved.
