Leanne Helfrich - Art & Photography

Leanne

Helfrich

South African Artist and Photographer

my art

I am an artist and photographer from Johannesburg, South Africa. I have two favourite places where I love to spend my time. One is in my art studio, the other is out in nature with my camera. Both give me the opportunity to capture and create something beautiful. The inspiration for the majority of my artworks is taken from my photographs and includes the fauna, flora and landscapes of South Africa, a country with so much natural beauty and diversity. This beauty is not just seen through the eyes but is an experience that touches all the senses and leaves you with memories that never fade. Spend one night in a South African game reserve and you won’t forget the sounds and the way it makes you feel. I have completed works in oil, watercolour, acrylic and graphite/pencil.

gallery

Karoo Morning

Oil on Canvas

The Karoo is a beautiful, arid region of South Africa. It stretches out across three provinces namely, the Eastern Cape, Western Cape and Northern Cape. The wide open spaces provide stunning views.

Karoo

Oil on Canvas

The photo used as the reference for this painting was taken somewhere along the N1 between Colesberg and Beaufort West on a trip down to Cape Town. We absolutely love the open road and the hours of driving past beautiful scenery. On this particular trip we stopped in at the Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West.

Buffallo at Rietvlei

Oil on Canvas

The Rietvlei Nature Reserve is a real treasure. It’s located between two big cities but once you’re in it, you feel as though you’re far from civilization. When we don’t have time to travel far to the game reserves, we just pop into Rietvlei for a couple hours and the need to be out in nature is satisfied.

Lilies

Oil on Canvas

These Lilies were in our accommodation at a stunning self-catering unit overlooking the Gonubie River in Gonubie, East London (Eastern Cape, SA). They were closed when we arrived but each day one would open, every one bigger than the size of my hand.

Hogsback

Oil on Canvas

Hogsback is a beautiful forest area in the Amathole Mountains in the Eastern Cape province of SA. One can enjoy long hikes, mountain streams, waterfalls and stunning views.

Proteas

Oil on Canvas

The King Protea is the national flower of South Africa and always a favourite. It’s symbolic meanings are strength, courage, and resilience as it is able to survive in harsh climate conditions

S100

Kruger National Park

Oil on Canvas

The S100 is one of my favourite roads in the Kruger National Park. It’s a dirt road and I love to have my window open to hear the sound of the tyres on the sand. It’s often a good road for finding prides of lion.

Pensive

Oil on Canvas

This is not one of my own photographs but I used it as a reference to try my hand at doing a portrait. I love the colours and the way she is sitting quietly and thinking.

Alone

Oil on Canvas

Also not one of my own photographs but I used this reference as I love old houses and the history that comes with them.

Lioness

Pencil and Graphite Sketch

I photographed this lioness on the main road below the Satara Restcamp in the Kruger National Park. She was one of 5 lying in the grass next to the road. Her yellow eyes locked onto us every time we made any movements or spoke to each other in the vehicle.

Cheetah Hunt

Pencil and Graphite Sketch

This photograph was taken in the Dinokeng Game Reserve. The three teenage cheetah were learning to hunt but most of the time it just turned into a game. It was lovely to watch the interaction between them and their mother.

Cheetah

Pencil and Graphite Sketch

This young cheetah from the Dinokeng Game Reserve sat still long enough for me to get a beautiful shot of him. It was a cool, rainy afternoon and he, along with his siblings and mother, were searching for something to eat.

Shells of Mossel Bay

Watercolour

Mark and I spent two months in Mossel Bay on South Africa’s southern coast where I collected and painted these shells. We stayed right above the Diaz Beach and were able to take relaxing, long walks next to the ocean.

Nguni

Oil on Canvas

Now this one is really special. It was a commission from a friend I’ve had since childhood. You’ll find the Nguni cows down on the beach in the Transkei region of South Africa. How cool is that!

Claire & Hannah

Watercolour

This photo was taken of my daughter and her friend on the Uvongo Beach in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. It’s just a simple painting but brings back special memories to treasure.

Karoo National Park

Watercolour

The Karoo National Park is one of the most beautiful places in SA where you will find absolute peace and quiet. If you take a drive on one of the routes up the mountains, the views are spectacular. You can see for miles!!

White Rose

Watercolour

I was pruning my white roses one day and kept one to use as a reference for this painting.

Zebra of Dinokeng

Pencil and Graphite Sketch

This photo of a herd of Zebra was taken in the Dinokeng Game Reserve. They were in a playful mood, nudging and biting each other. It was early in the morning when the world is still quiet and the colours of the bush in the morning light just beautiful.

Sea Bird

Watercolour

This is another one from Mossel Bay, SA. As part of the Garden Route, it’s one of South Africa’s most beautiful sections and a favourite with tourists. The Garden Route is a 300-kilometre stretch of the south-eastern coast of South Africa.

WATERCOLOUR PAINTINGS, PEN DRAWINGS AND SKETCHES

A couple years ago I started doing small watercolour paintings of birds from around SA using my photographs as the reference material. I continued on to the big five, plains game and flowers and eventually began printing them onto greeting cards and A5 journals and selling them. Some of my cards/journals are now in the UK and USA having been purchased as gifts to take home for friends and family members. It’s a special feeling to know someone out there is enjoying my art in the form of greeting cards/journals.

Aloe 1

Pencil Sketch

Aloe 2

Pen Drawing

Aloe 3

Pencil Sketch

Birds of the Kruger National Park - Watercolour

Birds of the Pilanesberg National Park - Watercolour

Birds of the Karoo National Park - Watercolour

Big Five of SA - Watercolour and Pen

Plains Game of SA - Watercolour and Pen

Little Karoo - Pen Sketch

Hoedspruit Elephant Rehabilitation and Development

After making my own greeting cards I received a request to paint the elephants of Jabulani/HERD and to print cards which could be sold to raise funds for their care. When something you do has a purpose, everything changes. This is a very special project for me and changed how I feel about my art. It’s not just a painting on a page, but is now out there to do some good and serve a purpose.

photography

With my first or second paycheck I purchased my first film camera in 1986 from a little secondhand store at the bottom of the office building I was working in. From the moment I took my first photograph, I fell in love with photography. I love how I can capture a moment that you wouldn’t otherwise see with the naked eye. Or how I can go on a trip, come back with hundreds of photographs and later on go through each one, remembering the place, the time of day, the feel of the air, the sounds I heard and the feeling I had at the time. This is particularly true when I take a trip to my favourite place, the Kruger National Park. I love sharing these photographs with others who may not have the opportunity to travel to all the beautiful areas of South Africa. I initially started out under the name “Leafricanne”, so you will notice this on some photographs. Some are just cellphones photos and others are taken with my Nikon camera. I have a couple lenses but my favourite is my Sigma, 150-600mm, contemporary lens, especially for wildlife photography. There are many places I have not been to yet, but I hope to visit them some day. Enjoy our beautiful country through my lens.