DENBY MEYER
Denby Meyer was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1966. She was educated at Woodmead High School and the Johannesburg School of the Arts. She completed her studies in the United States of America, and at the University of Cape Town, with a Liberal Arts Degree. She did post graduate studies with the AAA Advertising school, before a short stint in advertising.
Meyer became a professional artist in the late 1990s. Perhaps her best training came from growing up in and around the studio of her father, South Africa´s foremost realist painter, John Meyer. It comes as no surprise then that she has manifested a similar penchant and aptitude for realism. She is represented by the Everard Read Gallery in Johannesburg and Cape Town, where she has had a number of solo exhibitions, as well as having participated in several group exhibitions.
Denby Meyer’s work represents a personal view of the world that we live in, and the effect we have on it. The human stamp is to be found everywhere we look. Nowhere is untouched by mankind’s presence. Meyer’s work is about that immutable link. The social connection with our environment, its effect on our behaviour and the manner in which we react to it leaves an indelible stain that forever changes the landscape we inhabit. Her paintings emphasise this connection.
Without imposing too much, relying on her instincts and medium to explore that which unfolds, Meyer distils areas of clutter into their primal tonal values. In our subconscious, colour (like music) directs our emotions, and it is here that Meyer finds her unique way to present a personal vision, be it in acrylic or watercolour.
EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:
Woodmead High School
Johannesburg School of Art, Music and Ballet
Incline High School, Lake Tahoe, USA
University of Cape Town, Bachelor of Arts
Santa Clara University, California, USA, Liberal Arts
1989 Post Graduate Diploma, AAA Advertising School
1990 Travelled and worked in Europe, Israel and North Africa
1995 Worked as artist’s assistant to John Meyer
