Plett Arts Festival 2024
Bronze Fields Forest
"The silence and sounds of the forest offers a somewhat different experience as it amplifies any new sound that enters its realm," Wynand Davel.
Join us for a unique afternoon of bronze pouring by master Robert Leggat, followed by a sonic journey where music and the sounds of nature converge on Sunday 22 September.
Upon arrival enjoy a glass of bubbly while being introduced to the resident and exhibiting artists. Their work can be viewed in the Bronze Fields garden and forest . Some of the works of land artists participating in the festival will be in progress and can be viewed at this time.
At 2.30 pm, witness the master at play as Robert Leggat demonstrates a live bronze pouring and gives a talk on the traditional lost wax method he uses for his pieces.
A pathway through the forest leads to the "concert hall", where accomplished musicians, Germaine Leonard on guitar, Wynand Davel on violin and Auriol Hays singing - embark on and take you with them on a sonic journey combining, music, the forest and storytelling.
BRONZE ARTIST ROBERT LEGGAT
In 2006 Robert started his own foundry “Bronze Fields Foundry” on a smallholding on the outskirts of Plettenberg Bay in the Western Cape. Robbie does not delegate any of the complicated processes involved in creating a bronze and is personally involved from the start to the finish – the drawing; creating a maquette; building an armature which is the internal framework to support the sculpture; casting the sculpture using the lost wax method (cire perdu) and finally, the patination.
Robert works in various mediums, combining bronze, silver and stainless steel with great skill. He often incorporates semi-precious stones and uses diverse mediums for the base of his sculptures. His attention to detail when creating bronze sculptures is exceptional and the ability to capture the essence of his subject involves long hours observing, drawing and sketching from life plus the use of taxidermic examples borrowed from collections and museums. This enables him to produce anatomically correct pieces of great sensitivity with realistic depictions of textures and natural forms. His enquiring mind coupled with a natural inquisitiveness, inventiveness and a sense of fun gives his work a uniqueness not often found in the bronze medium.
ABOUT AURIOL HAYS
Auriol Hays has six albums and three EP's under her belt she effortlessly manages to deliver iconic songs from each musical offering. Mbokodo Women in Jazz and SAMA nominated Ms Hays traverses all genres including jazz, blues, soul, reggaeton and voiced music in English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Pedi and Portuguese.
In June 2019, Ms Hays opened for triple Grammy award winning musician and producer Ben Harper. Blessed with a powerful, sultry thick-as-molasses voice this songwriter’s compositions have been featured on SABC 3’s weekly soapie, Isidingo, The Mating Game and as well as by the French cosmetics brand Carrefour. Her voice has been used for various social justice campaigns as well as by local film makers.
Socially conscious, Ms. Hays’ Dreaming Music also includes a nod in support of Greenpeace, a song penned for the Arctic 30 titled “Come Home to Me”, intended to highlight the plight of Arctic drilling in Russia and the impact on the environment.
ABOUT WYNAND DAVEL
Wynand Davel is a freelance violinist specialising in Rock, Country, Jazz, Folk and Contemporary styles. Having been in the music industry for 20 years he has performed and recorded with the likes of Arno Carstens, Nataniel, Radio Kalahari Orkes , Carlo Mbeli, and many more South African and international acts including Dj’s.
He studied with Guido de Groote, Alan Soloman, and Jack de Wet.
ABOUT GERMAINE LEONARD
Germaine Leonard is a Cape Afro Jazz Guitarist who graduated in 2019 with a BA degree in Jazz Pedagogical studies at UCT. Germaine is now a music teacher in George, Western Cape. In 2019 he started his own Music Academy, The Germaine Leonard Music (GLM) Academy.
Germaine as a solo artist has worked with Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse when he celebrated 50 Years in Music. He also performed with the likes of Siphokazi Jonas, Errol Dyers, Alou April and many others.
