I treated myself to an Artist date today and attended the opening of Alice Elahi's exhibition called Reflections, held at her beautiful studio gallery in Brooklyn, Pretoria. She greeted me taking my hand in both hers as I introduced myself. Frail, but looking sprightly at 86 years of age, she stands welcoming waves of people arriving at the exhibition. Her work is inspired by nature, and she believes in fully experiencing the landscape she's painting. So much so, that she had spent many a day painting alone on a sand dune in the Namib desert, being dropped of in the morning only to be fetched again at nightfall. I read this in one of the many publications on display. She has had a lifetime of prolific painting and judging from the scores of people, excitedly discussing her work, she is well loved and respected as an artist. This fills me with hope. A quotation that speaks to my budding artist's heart reads: "Unless I have something to communicate, my work is...
The Restory is a Retreat Centre nestled against Tafelkop, a singular mountain head near Wakkerstroom, South Africa. Here we live a simple life as contemplatives. It is a place of re-connection: with ourselves, people, Nature, Silence and Creativity. Our retreats are aimed at this. Our conversations, writing and art centre around the univocity of life. We need a place that reminds us that we are all one. The Restory hopes to be such a place and space.