A truly exclusive exhibition

KNYSNA NEWS - Four local artists have joined hands to put together a special art exhibition for this Saturday, 2 July, in the Knysna Art Gallery at the Old Gaol.

The artists - Tanja Lategan, Elmari Bogenhofer, James Mooney and Julie Tugwell - have banded together in conjunction with the Knysna Arts Society (KAS) for the Exclusive Art Exhibition that will be open to the public for the whole of July.

While the exhibition is by nature exclusive to the Old Gaol, the artists kept the theme for the exhibition open, allowing them to free their creative minds.

The four artists' work vary in style. Julie Tugwell's art is a storm of styles ranging from realism, abstract emotionism and more recently a style of pop art which adds to this explorative journey of these different approaches.

Broken Wing by Tanja Lategan

Her KAS biography reads: "My fine art realism is an oil paint technique of herculean patience and structure taking months to complete. My abstract paintings are a roller-coaster of emotion and freedom, always trying to leave fear at the door. I am known for my flowers where these two techniques often meet."

Elmari Bogenhofer's art career originated backstage as a decor painter, having studied and then becoming a lecturer at the Technikon Pretoria.

She relocated to Knysna in 2021 and her art changes as it develops. She works in oils or acrylics and incorporates a multitude of paraphernalia and various mediums and techniques to attain a layered effect in her landscape and still life paintings.

James Mooney was born in England and moved to South Africa in 1980. He began painting seriously in the early 80s. He is self-taught and works in oil on board. His paintings cover a range of subject matter, from miniature forest scenes and landscapes to conceptual works and portraits.

Tanja Lategan turned to art full-time after a career in the tourism industry. She also switched from her previous mediums of oils and acrylics to watercolours, ink and pen. Lategan draws her inspiration from the natural world coupled with interesting vases. She is always on the hunt for new vase shapes, interesting branches and flowers. Always favouring minimal subject matter, her playful nature is depicted in the feminine and whimsical details of her creations.

Julie Tugwell's Deliverance