WHERE BARBARA

TRUE creative spontaneity requires discipline and commitment, and artistic excellence needs time and experience to grow.

That’s the belief of Durban artist and author Barbara Siedle, who is noted for her watercolour paintings. On Wednesday, she launched

an exhibition that runs until August 9 at the Elizabeth Gordon Gallery in Florida Road.

An accompanying book tells of her many adventures in the wilderness of South Africa and Namibia, and the exhibition consists of her paintings in this wonderful publication.

Opened by Siedle’s lifelong friend, Antony Starkey, former head of fine art at the Durban University of Technology, the exhibition drew a large audience.

There definitely is a revival going on in the art community of Durban. Exhibitions openings are attended by hundreds of people.

Siedle, who describes herself as “a combination of artist, teacher and writer”, trained at the Michaelis School of Art in Cape Town, the Munich Academy of Fine Art in Germany, and the Natal Technical College in Durban.

Being in the natural areas of Africa is where she is happiest and she feels most inspired by the dryness, the dust and watching animals and birds interacting in their daily lives.

She paints what she is passionate about.

“My fascinating journey of growth began with a combination of three things – I fell in love and, with my husband Joe Martin, rescued a spur-winged gosling that came to live with us. I then began a new career in watercolour painting.”

Unrelated as these three things seemed to be, they combined to change Siedle’s life and moved her in a new direction, to a new home and to a new career.

It is fascinating to hear her describe her background.

“I am a niece of Perla Siedle Gibson, known as Durban’s Lady in White, who sang to the troop ships as they arrived and departed from our harbour during World War II.

“But a lesser known facet of her talent was her artistic ability. Perla even earned a mention in Esme Berman’s encyclopedic book on art and artists of South Africa.

“There is no doubt that it was through my aunt that I have inherited my artistic talent. My singing ability is limited, but I have pursued a career in watercolour painting with as much vigour as she put into her life,” says Siedle.

“Our similarities do not end there as we were both born in Durban into a family headed by Otto and Mary Siedle, who married in 1887, and began our Siedle clan. “Otto wrote a book called

about the early history of