"Mawa"
Oil on canvas
I met Mawa at the Masai Mara on the last day of our safari. She is the daughter of Romi — a legendary leopardess known to every wildlife photographer in Kenya. That evening, Romi had just made a kill and hoisted it into a tree. Mawa, not far away, was posed on some dead wood. The late-day light bathed her in a golden ray against a background of darkness.
What immediately struck me was the tree itself. Those twisted branches, those forms convulsed by time — I saw in them the silhouette of a gazelle turning its head in flight. I tried to make that analogy legible in the composition, to make it a story within the story.
I love the cool, earthy colours of this dead wood, which highlight by contrast the warmth of Mawa's fur — her green eyes, her precise spots, that quiet way of occupying space as though this trunk had always belonged to her.
I — Original Work
"Mawa"
Original work sold — Private Collection
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II — Canvas Editions
Numbered art print, hand-signed by the artist. On 375 gsm matte canvas. Comes with a certificate of authenticity and the artist's double signature.
Shipping: rolled in a tube or framed ready to hang.
