Around 100 people recently attended an art exhibition at a local art studio which showcased up-and-coming, local artists’ work for the first time.
This is according to Cathy Milner, artist and art educator at The Stables Art Studio, located on the Natte Valleij farm.
Students of Cathy Milner, artist and art educator at The Stables Art Studio, recently exhibited their work created between 2020 and 2022. “I hope that this exhibition will be a celebration of our tenacity and creativity,” said Milner. PHOTO: Karla de Bod
MatieMedia attended the exhibition on 31 August.
Exposure for local art
“I think it’s great that student artists or up-and-coming artists are seen. [Their work is] elevated so that it’s on the same level as a gallery,” Milner said. “It’s a great place for them to see their work actually hung up with other artists, and I think they realise they’re not that bad and they can actually go out there.”
Milner currently has up to 40 students attending her art classes at the studio, some of whom have been attending for eight years, she stated. About 30 of Milner’s students exhibited their work during the exhibition, she said.
At The Stables Art Studio, Cathy Milner teaches all painting media, including drawing, mixed media and printmaking, she said. “I think it’s fresh art and fresh techniques. [There are] so many different mediums that we use,” said Sue Houghton, one of the studio’s newer students who had her work exhibited for the first time during a recent exhibition. “I think it’s an exciting vision for other people to come and look at different techniques and different styles of art in one place.” PHOTO: Karla de Bod
Some of Milner’s students sold their work during the studio’s last exhibition in 2019, which encouraged them to pursue art full-time, she told MatieMedia. “This is the exhibition before they become famous,” she told visitors during the exhibition.
A total of 27 artworks were sold at this year’s exhibition, Milner stated.
Asset to smaller art community
Erika Hansmann, who has been attending Milner’s art classes for eight years, believes that The Stables Art Studio’s classes and exhibitions are great assets to the smaller art community of Stellenbosch and surrounding areas, she stated.
Cathy Milner, artist and art educator at The Stables Art Studio, aimed to create “a time of celebration” during a recent art exhibition, where local artists could feel a sense of pride when looking at their work being exhibited for the first time. PHOTO: Karla de Bod
“I think it’s an absolute win for the community to have an art studio with such a qualified teacher in your neighbourhood,” stated Hansmann. “It’s a fantastic opportunity to show your work, and not only to local people – there are always lots of visitors from Cape Town, Paarl, Franschhoek and other nearby places.”
Courage within creativity
It took a lot of courage for new artists to exhibit their work, said Sue Houghton, one of Milner’s newer students.
“I’ve never ever put my creativity and my art in a space for anyone to look at and to criticise or admire,” said Houghton, who had her work exhibited for the first time at this exhibition. “It actually takes a huge amount of courage for every single artist to exhibit their work [for the first time].”