CLAUDIA TREAGUS
Artist Statement:
My favourite subject is everyday life
The ability to draw and paint feels like a gift to me. Since my art teacher invited me to take art at high school, right up until now, it is as if I have an unmerited present which I have not yet finished opening or unpacking. Not to say that I am “gifted” but that I have something that I love so much and am so grateful for.
Although I did well in art at school, I did not paint or draw until 15 years later when an uncomfortable pregnancy kept me awake for long hours at night. A friend of mine gave me a box of pastels and my love for painting was rekindled in the small hours of the morning.
Eventually I moved into oils and the real love affair began. I enjoy everything about oil painting. The colours available, its expressive quality, its forgiving nature, even the smell!
I have had excellent teaching from a number of local artists and then earlier this year with British artist and teacher, Emily Ball.
I paint a wide range of topics but if I were to choose a favourite subject I would say that it is ‘every-day-life’. I love to cook and am often torn between cooking the items put out on the counter, and painting them! Similarly, I am captivated by the bodies I see busy in day-to-day things, all around me: in the car park, on the street, at children’s sports activities, on the beach, and at the supermarket. Living in Cape Town offers a great variety of beautiful topics and I have to remember that I have years of painting ahead, hopefully I will get to paint many of them.