Caroline Kappers

Artist Statement:

I feel ‘Women’ embody creativity and strength and I feel our voices need to be heard in these relationships with journeys carrying the remnants of past cultural experiences into the future.

My portraits speak to the female or ‘other’ and where we find ourselves in the post-colonial world –  my paintings are of majestic African women adorned with traditional woven textiles interwoven into the tapestry of African life as embellishment of their traditional cultural heritage. It speaks to the uncovering the stories and perspectives of the forgotten or the unspoken truths that created these designs that contribute to the collective and the interconnectedness of all things.

I am a multidisciplinary South African artist formerly trained in graphic design and a corporate marketing background. I paint because I want to give expression to my ideas by using elements that speak to me. Red wine painting is symbolic of many elements that are sometimes not translated with other mediums. Over time, Red wine ink became a tool that highlighted my ability to give it a voice of its own.

Wine ink is created from tannins found in the bark of ancient oak trees and the purple hues of grape skins found in wine which relates to my love for nature. The ink is made from a reduction process and in essence it holds the subtlety of layered translucent washes like a sepia filtered lens.

My experimental use of colour often combining acrylic inks in my wine art as well as layering oil paint over the wine in a synthesist style is inspired by Gauguin. There are many threads woven into my art over time that originate from my love for travel, and a curiosity for life and wanting to give meaning to things. At any given time I experience an overlap of emerging projects and ideas in development that take on the expression of my recent journeys.

Throughout her artistic career an enduring love of the beauty and diversity of the life that surrounds her and her experience of it, remains a constant theme in my creative process and oeuvre. With an Artist residency in Berlin on the horizon in the not too distant future and with a busy and exciting year ahead I am looking forward to embracing new opportunities for growth and diversification in 2023. Appealing to an international audience, my signature wine ink paintings command an inspired presence.

Instagram:  Caroline_K_Art