The Cape Buffalo, one of South Africa's 'Big Five'. The most dangerous of all, even the lion and the leopard, the rhino and the elephant. All four of them will give a warning before attacking. The Cape Buffalo 'attacks first and asks questions afterwards!' Click on the link for some fascinating Big Five Facts

​Browse the GALLERY for all my available work.
​
For more information or to enquire about custom images, such as extra-large size wall art, please contact me:
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

On Thursday 18 July 2019, Nelson Mandela would have been 101 years old. The legacy he leaves is huge, not only here in South Africa, but across the world.

Nelson Mandela International Day was launched in 2009 via unanimous decision of the UN General Assembly. It was inspired by a call Nelson Mandela made a year earlier, for the next generation to take on the burden of leadership in addressing the world’s social injustices when he said that “it is in your hands now”. 
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It is more than a celebration of Madiba’s life and legacy; it is a global movement to honour his life’s work and to change the world for the better.

He's a beauty, isn't he?​ Large size prints are perfect for making a big statement and providing a focus for any room in the house.

Canvas prints of my collection of animals are available in a range of sizes up to A0 (1189mm x 841mm).  They come ready to hang, stretched on a spruce frame. All you need is a nail to transform your living space!

Click here for prices (RSA only). For quotations for overseas delivery: email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
​Also available from Fine Art America.

Browse the GALLERY for all my available work.
​
For more information or to enquire about custom images, such as extra-large size wall art, please contact me:
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Durbanville is a rural residential suburb on the northern outskirts of Cape Town. It is surrounded by farms producing wine and wheat.

Back in the days of the old Cape Colony, in the year 1698, Simon van der Stel, the first Governor, granted farmland to free burgher, Hendrik Sneewind. Later, the farm changed hands to Captain Diemer when he married the widow Sneewind, and thus Diemersdal was formally established. An inventory found in an old leather-bound book dating back to 1702 lists 45 wine barrels, a wine press and glass bottles, indicating that wine has been made on the Estate for over three centuries.

​Six generations of Louws have practiced their art with skill and passion at Diemersdal since the Estate passed into their hands in 1885. More than 12 decades later, Diemersdal is a well-known landmark in the lush Durbanville Valley, one of the Cape’s oldest wine regions. It still produces wines today.

Bo-Kaap has been known by many names
The earliest development in the Bo-Kaap area was undertaken in the 1760s by Jan de Waal. Subsequently, the area became known as Waalendorp. It has also been known as the Malay Quarter, the Slamse Buurt, and Scotcheskloof. Translated from Afrikaans, Bo-Kaap means ‘Above the Cape’.

2) One of the oldest residential areas in Cape Town
Part of the Bo-Kaap’s charm is the mix of Cape Dutch and Cape Georgian architectural styles. One of the oldest buildings in the Bo-Kaap has been turned into a museum. The Bo-Kaap Museum showcases local Islamic culture and heritage. It was built by Jan de Waal in 1768, and is the oldest house in the area still in its original form.

​3) Subject to the Group Areas Act under Apartheid
In the 1700s, political exiles, slaves and convicts were sent to the Cape by the Dutch from India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and the Indonesian Archipelago. These people and their descendants became known as Cape Malays. Many of them eventually settled in the Bo-Kaap. In the mid-twentieth century, the Apartheid government, under the Group Areas Act of 1950, declared the Bo-Kaap a Muslims-only area and forced people of other religions and ethnicity to leave the area. This case was unique because, during this time, most working class (and non-white) people in South Africa were being moved away from the cities.

4) Home to the country’s oldest mosque
Construction on the Auwal Mosque in Dorp Street began in 1794, making it the oldest mosque in South Africa. However, Muslims were only allowed to practice their religion in public from 1804. The mosque was built on land belonging to a freed slave called Coridon van Ceylon, whose daughter, Saartjie van den Caap, inherited and donated the land. Abdullah Kadi Abdus Salaam, also known as Tuan Guru, was the mosque’s first imam. Tuan Guru was imprisoned on Robben Island for political reasons. While he was there, he wrote an entire Quran from memory. This Quran is available for viewing at the Auwal Mosque.
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5) The resting place of holy scholars
The Tana Baru Cemetery – which means ‘New Ground’ — was the first piece of land assigned by the government for use as a Muslim cemetery after religious freedom was granted in 1804. Regarded as one of the most hallowed cemeteries in Cape Town, Tana Baru, which is situated at the top of Longmarket Street on the slopes of Signal Hill, is home to three important kramats. These holy shrines were erected to honour the imams Tuan Nuruman, Tuan Sayeed Alawse, and Tuan Guru.

​Visit the gallery for images of animals, birds, botanicals, iconic buildings and landscapes in and around Cape Town and beyond.

All images are available as high quality prints on non-archival paper or on stretched canvas. Click here for prices.

Place your order
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Other prints and a range of lifestyle products are available from Fine Art America - worldwide shipping available.

​Visit the gallery for more images which are available as high quality prints on non-archival paper or on stretched canvas. Click here for prices.

Place your order
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Other prints and a range of lifestyle products are available from Fine Art America - worldwide shipping available.

The Art South Africa Exhibition opened on Friday held in the Richard Crowie Hall in Kirstenbosch Gardens in Cape Town. This wonderful exhibition showcases an array of work by top South African artists. It is always such a pleasure to exhibit in such esteemed company, in this beautiful location. The Gardens are looking wonderful at this time of year.
The exhibition runs daily 10am to 5pm until 11 August.

Tondi Art Competition
I'm also delighted to announce that my Rheenendal Couple was accepted as one of the top 20% of entries to become a finalist in the prestigious Tollman Bouchard Finlayson Art Award which is part of the ever popular Hermanus Fynarts Festival. The exhibition runs until 16 June at the Bouchard Finlayson Wine Estate in the Hemel-in-Aarde Valley.

Visit the gallery for more images which are available as high quality prints on non-archival paper or on stretched canvas. Click here for prices.

Place your order
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Other prints and a range of lifestyle products are available from Fine Art America - worldwide shipping available.

​Robben Island, which lies off the coast of Cape Town, is probably best known as a prison and was first used as such in the 17th century for the isolation of mainly political prisoners by the Dutch. A whaling station was built on the island in 1806 by Scottish whaler James Murray. The island has also been used as a leper colony and an animal quarantine station.
 
From 1961, Robben Island was used by the South African government as a prison for political prisoners and convicted criminals. In 1969 the Moturu Kramat, which is now a sacred site for Muslim pilgrimage on Robben Island, was built to commemorate Sayed Abdurahman Moturu, one of Cape Town's first imams, who was exiled to the island in the mid-1740s. He died there in 1754. 

​With the end of apartheid, the island has become a popular destination with global tourists. In 1999 the island was declared a World Heritage Site. Every year thousands of visitors take the ferry from the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town for tours of the island and its former prison. Many of the guides are former prisoners.
Read more fascinating facts about Robben Island here 

​Visit the gallery for more images which are available as high quality prints on non-archival paper or on stretched canvas. Click here for prices.

Place your order
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Other prints and a range of lifestyle products are available from Fine Art America - worldwide shipping available.

'Peppers' a new full colour scratchboard image, hand coloured using translucent inks. I'm very pleased with the way this has turned out and am planning a whole range of glowing fruit and vegetable artworks. Perfect for a kitchen or dining room. I'm also hoping for additional interested from some of my commercial clients.

This will be one the works featuring in a new exhibition of works my South African Artists at Kirstenbosch Gardens in Cape Town next month. I'll tell you more about that next week!

Visit the gallery for more images which are available as high quality prints on non-archival paper or on stretched canvas. Click here for prices.

Place your order
by phone on +27 79 247 7532
by email to gutmansolly@gmail.com
or inbox me on facebook: Solly Gutman Scratchboard Art

Other prints and a range of lifestyle products are available from Fine Art America - worldwide shipping available.

'The Rheenendal Couple' is my entry for this year's Tollman Bouchard Finlayson Art Award which is part of the  the annual Hermanus Fynarts Festival which runs from 07 to 17 June this year. This is an exhibition of ‘tondos’, round paintings, which are attractively displayed on barrel ends in the wine cellar at the Bouchard Finlayson Vineyard and Winery in the beautiful Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, just outside Hermanus.

The Tollman family, owners of Bouchard Finlayson Winery, has long been great supporters of the arts in South Africa and is sponsoring the competition for the sixth consecutive year. This unique national art competition awards a first prize of
R20 000, second prize of R10 000, and 2 merit prizes of R5 000 each. The theme this year is ‘Harmony’.

Once the winners have been announced as part of the Hermanus Fynarts Festival, the works of between 50 and 60 finalists will be for sale and on display in the Bouchard Finlayson cellar as the ‘Tollman Bouchard Finlayson Barrel Head Exhibition’ which will run until the end of September.