Around the World in 80 Dresses

A calligrapher in Singapore wrote the classic Chinese poem for me with his brush on a scroll.  I showed it to an English speaking Chinese friend and he translate d and interpreted: The rain at night / Plum blossoms / Winter sweet/ In the land of dreams about the butterflies / A wintry feel The poem, he said, is unusual in so far as the poet evokes reminiscences of winter in spring, while most of the poems about spring are just the other way round. They speak of hope for spring and renewal in the clutches of a hard winter.  I myself do not often think of winter in spring. When I do so I think of a warm fireplace or the first hellebore blossoms I missed. Winter is the time of subdued colours like the animal print blouse in blurred ‘shades of grey’ as if calligraphed with an ink brush. The black pencil skirt was also sampled in Singapore while the splash of red is European fusion. No Singaporean Chinese city sleeker would dare to wear such a bright colour. Understateme...

At my favourite art gallery  Rust-en-Vrede in Cape Town' s Northern Suburbs I saw a painting of a bold young woman looking at me as if to say Here I am . What's the price of the world ? I bought it on the spot. At the vernissage I was lucky to meet the artist. Elzabé Kritzinger invited me to her studio in Hout Bay and I had the privilege to see the bulk of her art work. She mainly paints women. I paged through her paintings and dozens of young girls, old women, black women, white women emerged. A fascinating female world. One of them found a home next to her sister in my apartment. They are greeting me and making me glad every time I enter my lounge. Two more took over my bedroom. Some others are populating the internet art platform of saatchiart. Do have a look. My black-and-white jacket from Foschini is contrasting Elzabé’s jouyful colours. Her girls are to occupy centre stage.