The SASA Council thanks all of the 167 artists that took part in our Selection Day for your participation, patience and good humour. We received 486 works on the day, of which 229 were selected to the Annual Exhibition, the maximum that the venue can accommodate. This was surely a daunting task for our three judges, who worked tirelessly and with great care.

Hayden Proud (retained from 2007) is the curator of Historical Art (Painting and Sculpture) at Iziko Museums, SANG and the Michaelis Collection; as well as an author, editor, and lecturer in Fine Art.

David Zetler is the gallery owner of the renowned Hout Street Gallery in Paarl, as well as an artist in his own right.

Ashley Bestbier (who paints professionally under her name Ogilvy) originally trained as a graphic designer, is currently a teacher of Fine Art and is also an artist of note, having been included in the De Beer’s Collection, exhibited at numerous local and international galleries, and studied under many notable world-renowned art teachers.
All three selectors commented on the very high standard of the work presented to them, and hold the society in very high regard. I am confident in the selection results, the judges having done their utmost to judge fairly, consistently and without prejudice. I am sure you will all agree, when the exhibition was opened, that the society has outdone itself yet again, and each work is a winner in its own right!

AWARDS
Best Oil: Christine Cherry-Jones, 'The Red Studio'.
Highly Commended: Lynn Brown, 'Porcelain Moment'; Heather Mockridge, 'Ladies Lunching'; Sue Kidd, 'Deliver us from Evil'; Nola Muller, 'The Barn'; Laura Wenman, 'Julia’s Jacket'; and Christine Cherry-Jones, 'Three Men in Love'.
Commended: Margie Johnson, 'Porcelain Pears'; Angeline Lea, 'Lewis – Woodstock'; and John Robert, 'Camel Thorn Tree, Kalahari'.

Best Watercolour: Penny Steynor, 'Morning Mist'
Highly Commended:Ray Potter, 'Pumpkin and Corrugated Iron'
Commended: Beth Lowe, 'Feeding Frenzy'; Helene Swart, 'Agapanthus'; and Molly Vincent with 'Field Poppies'.
       
Best Acrylic: Bill Brown, 'Bokaap'.
Highly commended: Gareth Hickling, 'Visitation'.
Commended: Daniel Mathews, 'Welcome to the Red Cross Children’s Hospital', and Di Ackerman, 'Quietude (St. Etienne du-Mont)'.
 
Best Mixed-Media: Marion Cross, 'Raining Flowers'
Commended: Mary-Ann Nuis, 'Desert Battle'; Gareth Hickling, 'Shaman Figure'.

Best Pastel: Charles van der Merwe, 'Café – St. Germain', and his work 'Anje' was also Highly Commended.
Best Drawing: Solly Gutman, 'District Six, cnr. Hanover and Tennant Streets.'
Sue Meershoek’s sculpture, ‘Mother Africa’ was Highly Commended.

The exhibition itself was a great success, and numerous visitors commented on the high standard of work on display. We were very encouraged by the opening address given by Virginia MacKenny, a senior lecturer in painting at the Michaelis School of Fine Art, UCT. Virginia, having been on both sides of the selection process, gave her views on the difficulties of judging and the process of being judged, and urged all members to continue with renewed vigour, to pursue and advance their art. She also very eloquently observed that the ego is fragile but that the spirit is resilient and the trick is in learning the difference between the two.

It was also wonderful to see our fellow artist and patron of SASA, Conrad Theys, looking so well and recovered from his bypass operation earlier this year, and able to attend the opening of the exhibition. For those who were not at the opening, Conrad Theys presented SASA with another very generous donation of R10 000, to use as we wish for the society.  (His previous donation of R10 000 was used to establish our website and has since sustained its upkeep). Conrad spoke briefly, commenting that he did not believe in the idea of being a patron on paper only, but rather that we needed to put something back into the art community, in response to that which has sustained us over the years. He also spoke of our mutual love of art, our colleagues, our earnings through art and the enrichment we have received in our lives due to art. It’s good to hear, also, that Conrad is well enough to paint again and we look forward to seeing what comes off his easel! Our sincere thanks go to Conrad for his generosity, his love of art and promotion of art and artists. We pledge to make use of his donation wisely.