Harry Erasmus

He fell in love with art and everything about art at a very early age. Apart from his parent’s encouragement, he had no formal training. Today he is grateful that he has learned to paint in his own way, for it enabled him to be more creative, daring and to develop a style of his own.

“I want to capture an intimate moment between the viewer and the painting. I paint what I see whether I am in the mind or realistically and not so much what I know about a form. I rather capture the illusion of the light and dark shapes, on the things, not the things.

My paintings must have a lot of presence, to seem uncomplicated while providing a complex message on many levels. The viewer should be drawn into its reality however the emotional response remains open to the viewer’s interpretations.

If I put too much detail in the painting I leave nothing to the imagination of the viewer.

I most like the parts of my paintings that are neither abstract nor realistic, but are in an undefined state of transition.”

Over the years he exhibited annually in major exhibitions in South Africa. He is in various private collections in South Africa and abroad; countries such as Switzerland, Spain, France, U.K. and Canada.