JEREMY VAN DER WANT
Jeremy Van der Want grew up in the Johannesburg suburb of Melville where he pined for the freedom of the South African bushveld and a way to express his love for nature. He was fortunate enough to encounter the acclaimed abstract expressionist Fred Schimmel who was a family friend and allowed Jeremy as an eager youngster to have access to his studio, where Jeremy learned paper making, the fundamentals of printing and the personal and meaningful nature of Schimmel's impressive oeuvre of abstract landscape, highly specific mark-making and colour mixing.
Jeremy later found his way to Bill Ainslie's Johannesburg Art Foundation where he took formal instruction in painting and drawing but abandoned
the later part of the coursework in favour of active visits to the natural veld surrounding Johannesburg where he undertook to clean a substantial river and return to the school with the trash and pollution he found. This material was then dug into the lawn of the Art Foundation, an act which the then administrators found somewhat objectionable.
There followed a number of years during which Jeremy wandered the country travelling by any means including hitchhiking, cycling, canoeing and walking. Any and all experiences in the natural world were embraced by the artist.
Jeremy finally resolved his art-making into the practice of viewing the natural world of animals and landscapes with a childlike eye.
A delicate poetic balance is created between technical skill and the freedom of the artist's inner child to embrace a lifetime of authentic experience in the world of natural wonders he encountered exploring Southern Africa's beauty and natural grace. Unique to Jeremy Van der want's artwork is the willingness to embrace feelings of joy and happiness despite the ongoing environmental destruction.
JEREMY VAN DER WANT
Jeremy Van der Want grew up in the Johannesburg suburb of Melville where he pined for the freedom of the South African bushveld and a way to express his love for nature. He was fortunate enough to encounter the acclaimed abstract expressionist Fred Schimmel who was a family friend and allowed Jeremy as an eager youngster to have access to his studio, where Jeremy learned paper making, the fundamentals of printing and the personal and meaningful nature of Schimmel's impressive oeuvre of abstract landscape, highly specific mark-making and colour mixing.
Jeremy later found his way to Bill Ainslie's Johannesburg Art Foundation where he took formal instruction in painting and drawing but abandoned
the later part of the coursework in favour of active visits to the natural veld surrounding Johannesburg where he undertook to clean a substantial river and return to the school with the trash and pollution he found. This material was then dug into the lawn of the Art Foundation, an act which the then administrators found somewhat objectionable.
There followed a number of years during which Jeremy wandered the country travelling by any means including hitchhiking, cycling, canoeing and walking. Any and all experiences in the natural world were embraced by the artist.
Jeremy finally resolved his art-making into the practice of viewing the natural world of animals and landscapes with a childlike eye.
A delicate poetic balance is created between technical skill and the freedom of the artist's inner child to embrace a lifetime of authentic experience in the world of natural wonders he encountered exploring Southern Africa's beauty and natural grace. Unique to Jeremy Van der want's artwork is the willingness to embrace feelings of joy and happiness despite the ongoing environmental destruction.
