Hermien van der Merwe

Cape Town, the place where I live, home to my heart. The place where Fynbos grows: Proteas, Pincushions, Ericas and Restios. Embraced by Table Mountain, it’s the most beautiful place in the world. And it’s here, as Day Zero loomed, that the City’s people rallied together to save every drop of water they could. We lined up our buckets, nothing was allowed to go to waste. Water, as precious as gold.  And as the drought continued, Table Mountain was regularly engulfed by devastating veld fires – threatening Fynbos plants, animals and human beings.It’s in this space of beauty and scarcity, where I explore through my art, the interaction between fire, drought and rain on Cape Fynbos. 

I focus my attention on the connection between heaven and earth — the point where heaven meets earth.  I constantly explore the parallels between the physical and the spiritual, as I engage with nature as creation. Through my theme and application, I try to raise awareness to the Fynbos Biosphere to preserve Fynbos for future generations - preferably as a living, adaptable Biome but also immortalized in art.