:: 2017 :: 50cm x 50cm :: Acrylics, Inks and Markers on Canvas ::
During a visit to South Africa in April 2017, my husband and I had the good fortune of visiting some Bushman rock art sites. One of these was a very secluded and sacred locale where the Veldmansvlei river emerges from the Langeberg mountains (see also this artwork). This piece, which was given to my husband for his 35th birthday, expresses the silent awe we felt for the place, and the special moments we shared there, swimming in the dark waters and beholding the rock art which surrounded the pool. At one point, I swam towards the waterfall hidden behind a shield of rock, and spoke aloud the word for ‘rain’ or ‘water’ in the /Xam Bushman language: !khwa. I wondered if this was the first time the word had been heard in this place for a thousand years…
The title in the proper orthography of the /Xam language is he sitən ǂan hŋ siŋ !khwa-ka /kwa:, meaning literally 'then we knew (and) have seen the name of the rain'.
i spoke the name of the rain to the waterfall hidden in the rocks... |
!khwa the first time heard !khwa since the painters melted into memory... |
in dreams the mantis came and gave to us an ever-flowing stream upon our eyes… |
The sacred water at Veldmansvlei, Riversdale, Western Cape, South Africa
The rock art is located in various alcoves around the upper pool in the upper centre
