SEDGEFIELD NEWS - One of the first things one notices about gentle spirit and Sedgefield artist, Xsto (Christo) Pieterse is a well-worn smile deeply etched into his face and his enormous, paint-stained hands.

At his newly opened The Green Gallery, Pieterse doesn't only display his own unique art but also helps to promote other local artists.

"I can't resist picking up pieces of wood and other materials just lying around or being thrown away as scrap," he confesses with a sheepish grin. "There is so much stuff that can be recycled, but to me just about everything has a character and a story waiting to be exposed with a little help and twining from me, ha!"

A couple of years ago, before moving to Sedgefield permanently, Pieterse used to drive all the way from Fraserburg to the Sedgefield Market to showcase his artwork. Multi-skilled Pieterse used to work as a plumber in Fraserburg and his wife, Patricia, started the town's first nursery. (His wife now manages the mosaic art projects at Masithandane.)

Pieterse was born in Benoni but the family soon moved to Vereeniging where he completed his matric.

"I only have one sibling, an older brother who always wanted to become a pilot while I wanted to be a deep-sea diver. My mum used to joke about how different her kids were - the one wants to be up in the sky and the other one lost in a dreamworld under the ocean."

As a child Pieterse already started to make his own model airplanes from 'tamatiekissies' (wooden tomato boxes).
After school he joined the army for two years. "I learned a lot of myself during that time. I'm a gentle person and do not like bullies. We were fed so much propaganda that it took years for me to free myself from it."

Much to his father's dismay, Pieterse decided to become a bricklayer. "My dad believed that being a bricklayer was a low class job, but I have always enjoyed working with my hands. There is a very specific satisfaction that comes from making things and seeing something take shape."

During the 1980's Pieterse became "tired" of Johannesburg and spent a couple of years living in Knysna. He also worked for a company in George, building the Spur-complex in Oudtshoorn.

"The guy I worked for urged me to give more expression to my artistic dreams, so I learned how to work with leather and, with a little help from Kevin Berry, taught myself how to make shoes and women's boots - I loved it!"

As often happens in life, Pieterse at one stage went to Mpumalanga for his daughter's birthday and didn't return for another twenty years.

"That's when I eventually broke away to Fraserburg and found my soul again - in the Karoo the sun scorched away all the unnecessary layers to at last reveal my true self again. It felt good."

Working with wood, says Pieterse, has always been one of his passions. Gesturing with his large fist placed over his chest: "I want kids and people to know there is hope. That's why I have a strong emphasis on re-useable material. So much gets thrown away especially on building sites, which can be recycled and be used to make something new!"
With his keen eye for discarded wood, Pieterse often goes for long walks up the coast.

"When I spot a piece of distinctive wood, I just know what I'm going to do with it - at other times I drag a piece of wood home and months go by during which I keep turning it on its head and side until I eventually begin to see what it is meant to be," he chuckles victoriously. Pieterse also makes beautiful portrait frames from discarded pieces of wood. "There is something as magical as working with old 'geelhout' (yellowood) - its character just stands out and I go out of my way to preserve the marks where the original woodcutter used his little axe, or you can clearly see the markings of the old 'treksaag' (lumber saw) they used to work with in those days. Within the wood is a deep and precious history - each with its own and unique story which I cannot bear to see destroyed."

Pieterse enjoys attending the Designer Expo in Cape Town and also belongs to the Cape Craft Design Institute (CCDI). "The CCDI doesn't give financial support, but they do help artists by sending them on courses and teach artists how to run their own small businesses as well as helping you get placement at design indabas."

Typically modest, Pieterse, who still takes on projects as site manager on building sites to support his artistic endeavors, says he decided to open up his own art gallery because he didn't have the courage to approach other galleries to display his work.

"Nah," he shakes his head with another shy smile. "I wasn't sure they wouldn't send me away laughing and now I can actually help other artists who may feel the same trepidation. I appreciate what others are trying to do with the means available to them and the talent they wish to develop."

The Green Gallery's convenient situation next to Venus Ear Tea Garden in the Houtappel Building on Main Road, Sedgefield, enables art lovers to step into the backyard for a nice relaxing meal. For more information contact Xsto Pieterse on 072 714 1587.

VIEW MORE PHOTOS HERE.


On seeing this stunning fish which Pieterse has created from driftwood, it becomes a sure thing that someone will soon be congratulating themselves with this find!

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS: ANOESCHKA VON MECK, KNYSNA-PLETT HERALD JOURNALIST