Ariana van Heerden

Ariana was born 1956 in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia), but grew up as a true child of Africa. Zimababwe, Angola, Mozambique and South Africa have been home and living in these places gave her a love for wide and wild open spaces as well an appreciation and yearning for travel and adventure into new landscapes.

Having explored from Africa to Antarctica, land and seas,her works show her extensive travels of wild lands and seas.
She travels extensively and is particularly drawn to vast, open spaces. Yet she finds the mysterious density of the tropics and the African bush, as well as the isolation of islands equally fascinating. By roaming, she often encounters wilderness where nature has not yet been totally colonized and controlled by man. Such unique enclaves and often-transient frontiers are her clues to the intriguing web of life, and serve as a major source for her painting reference material.

Such wild frontiers are not confined to land – indeed, the ocean formed an integral part of her growing consciousness as a child whilst living in Angola, when travelling by ship to South Africa was the order of the day. Early memories of the ocean as well as harbours, reefs and undulating coastlines are etched deeply. Later, as a teenager in Mozambique and Brazil, recreational sailing was a regular activity, further strengthening her bond with nature. Beach camping as a child under vast, dark skies also spurned a curiosity in practical astronomy, further feeding into her appreciation of the fascinating cosmos.

ROAMING

Van Heerden roams and explores constantly. Places where she has found inspiration include Alaska, Angola, Antarctica, Argentina, Austria, Botswana, Brazil, and Britain. Canada, China, Comoros, Croatia, Cuba, France, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Israel, Italy, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Portugal, Seychelles, Spain, Taiwan, Zimbabwe

Botswana II
In this work, one can see Ariana's fearless approach to open space, no attempt is made to create a focal point, as people that know the vast African landscapes will understand, very often all there is, is space. Land meets sky with nothing else. Or in the case of her seascapes, her in Equable the vast sea is all that's visible as if the sky has been swallowed up and all that's left is the ocean.

Equable

From the tranquility of space to the power of nature here and beyond our atmosphere.

What the sealer might have seen: Anvers Island, Antarctica
Chalk pastel on paper (1020 x 420mm)

To soft warmth of shallow pools and reflective light.

Luff (83x117cm)

Low trapeze (83x117cm)

Images and Statement Sourced From:
http://www.art.co.za/

My Thoughts:
In life we tend to feel the need to fill it with things and stuff in the hope that this will make us feel fulfilled. I sometimes get the feeling that art and artists is similar in that artists try and fill a canvas with powerful focal points and packed with meaning or concept. Please don't misunderstand me, I love works with deep concept, dark, in fact the darker the better, but... In art as in life, the quiet moments of nothingness can be just as poignant as the hustle of crammed 'moments of meaning'. Those quiet times when we actually have time to consider and wonder at life and the world. It's this that draws me to artists like Ariana who are not afraid of the wide open spaces and the silent moments that so many people find awkward. Time to reflect.

A time to stop speaking in loud tones of urgency to try and get our personal message across and stop to listen to other peoples voices, because the truth is their voice and message is as important as our own. In learning to listen perhaps we find more in common than the things that set us apart and maybe we learn something new in the process or perhaps actually find some wisdom in another persons journey.
Content Author: Artkapture

Artists Contact Details: Ariana van Heerden
https://www.facebook.com/ariana.vanheerden
Cell: 082 5224477 / Tel: +27 12 460 8533 (studio) (South African Dialing Codes +27)
Email: [email protected]