Lesley Charnock Gallery

Lesley Charnock is a South African artist based in Cape Town who is well known for depicting essentially South African scenes in oils and acrylics.

Lesley comments."A drive in the Klein Karoo is a kaleidoscope of wonderful, essentially South African scenes to paint. Donkey carts, labourer's cottages, aloes, distant blue mountains and always people walking along country roads!

I love painting people. People working in the fields or selling fruit, flowers."

On her many trips to Pondoland in the Northern Transkei, Lesley has collected a wealth of materials for her paintings. She paints women walking along dusty roads carrying water or wood on their heads, small children beside them and babies swaddled in blankets upon their backs.

Recently Lesley's works have been inspired by her many visits to the Claremont and Cape Town taxi ranks. These paintings capture scenes that are familiar anywhere in South Africa.

"In general I am drawn to the dramatic tonal values of figures in the bright African sun, the sharp contrast of highlights and deep shadows. I enjoy the richness of working in oils and the convenience, speed and versatility of acrylics."