Andre du Toit

“Portraits are my passion,” says André, who plies his craft in the tranquil town of Porterville in the Bergrivier.

“My subjects are mostly random faces who speak to my imagination and it’s hard to explain what draws me to them in the first place and what moves me to repaint them. It’s a very intuitive process and the end result is almost always a surprise. When you do portraits of people you know, there’s always the pressure of rendering a recognisable image, which makes the whole creative journey less free and spontaneous. I love the element of surprise and I love to hang a newly finished painting on my own walls until I’m ready to add my signature and let it go.”

With many of the galleries who mounted his works forced to close as a result of Covid restrictions, André has found social media* a perfect platform for his art. “It’s just so accessible and affordable, and I love dealing directly with buyers for that personal element.”

If you would like to visit his studio, feel free to give him a call and arrange it to go see his lovely work. Call to arrange and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea in his beautiful garden with the artist himself.