MEET KIM BLACK Cape Town-based artist

from Aspire Lifestyle Spring 2022

A FAMILY OF WINE Cape Wine Crafters

Meet Kim Black

Cape Town-based artist Kim Black takes inspiration from flowers and layers of colour. BY JENNIFER CAMPBELL

Passionate about paint and peonies, artist Kim Black lives and works in Kommetjie, on the southern peninsula of Cape Town. Here, she takes inspiration from the florals that feature so predominately in her work.

Florals take centre stage in all of Kim’s pieces. “The reason these beauties inspire me is their organic loveliness and abundant colour palette,” she explains. “Flowers speak a language without using words, and this connection with the viewer is beautiful.” Blooms of all shapes and sizes are interpreted in various ways across the artworks, and Kim finds freedom in the form of flowers and the limitless ways in which they can be revealed through her paintings.

Most of Kim’s artwork features large canvases in acrylic and oils, and the style itself varies from impressionistic representational floral to an abstract form of botanical interpretation. “Colour is always the most important drive to create feeling behind the work,” says Kim. Kim mainly works on commissions for her private clients but also gets involved in exhibitions in Cape Town and beyond. Her work has featured in many private collections worldwide, from the United Kingdom and Australia to Finland, Germany and Canada. In 2019, she received a mural commission for the Mount Nelson Hotel, one of her largest works to date — a 10 by 3.5 metre wall in the hotel’s Oasis Bistro.

Kim also forms part of the Open Studios team in Kommetjie. The group hosts an annual weekend event where artists open their studios up to the public. Guests are invited to indulge their senses in various art forms, ranging from ceramics and printmaking to sculpture and painting.

Kim is very aware of the value of introducing art to underprivileged children and gives lessons once a week to teens at an organisation called Hopetown in Ocean View. “Teaching teens the value of creativity and the chance to voice who they are through colour and form is a real confidence-building skill,” she says. “To see strength and ability rise in these amazing kids is pure joy.”