Designer profile: Kurt Pio
This Cape-based artist paints botanicals so lifelike, you can almost smell the fynbos.
Most paintings with flowers as their subject
matter tend to remind us of what we’re
bound to inherit from Gran one day, whether
or not we’d like to. But Kurt Pio’s botanical
paintings are different.
Using various media, he draws inspiration
from the imperfections in and unpredictability of
nature. Then he combines his own contemporary
painting style with classic artistic techniques used
in botanical paintings in the early 20th century.
Kurt’s penchant for bringing nature to life on
canvas was something he stumbled on ‘while in
the process of finding his niche’.
A keen interiors
fundi, he first tried his hand at interior decorating
– only to discover he really preferred to create
the actual decorations!
When Cécile & Boyd’s revamped their Durban
store and extended their product line last year,
Kurt was commissioned to do a series of botanical
paintings for the final decorative touch. That’s
when he realised he was intrigued with the genre,
plus, when almost all his paintings were sold at
that relaunch party, it confirmed for him that this
artistic route had plenty of growth potential.
It’s widely acknowledged that South Africa
is blessed with one of the most diverse floral
kingdoms in the world, so it’s no surprise that
Kurt finds plenty of inspiration painting indigenous
plants: ‘It’s as if South Africans are allowing
themselves to look at their own beauty and the
immense beauty of their country again, without
feeling guilty about their past. We’re allowing
ourselves to be proud and feel infatuated with
what we see. Which is why the present climate
is perfect for South African-themed art,’ he says.
While portraying his floral subjects realistically,
Kurt’s paintings also contain a whimsical element
that blurs the lines between fact and fiction,
making them more interesting.
Kurt Pio 083 687 84122