With Christmas just around the corner, don't worry if you haven't had time to find the perfect gift for your friends and family. The Hout Street Gallery Gift Shop offers a diverse range of beautiful South African gifts and crafts, including ceramics, jewellery, bronzes, sculpture, clothing, hand-blown glass, curios and an extensive range of Carrol Boyes functional art.

With the relaxed atmosphere and personalised service, the Gallery Shop is an ideal place to complete your Christmas shopping.

It is open on Monday - Saturday from 08:30am - 5:00 pm and on Sunday from 10:00am - 5:00 pm (except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day).

See Invitation for 35th Summer Salon

270 Main Street, Paarl
Telephone: +27 (0) 21 872 5030
Fax: +27 (0) 21 872 7133

E-mail: zetler@icon.co.za
Web: www.houtstreetgallery.co.za

Thanks to all of you who joined us for the start of our 35th Summer Salon. It was opened by acclaimed ceramist Ralph Johnson who has exhibited his work with us since he moved to Cape Town. As always, the Summer Salon presents a wide selection of works by South African artists and runs until 31 January 2011. Visit our website for the full list of participating artists: www.houtstreetgallery.co.za

For those of you who couldn’t quite hear Ralph’s entire speech because the room was so full, or who were unable to join us, here is a copy of it. It was a great way to help us celebrate our 35th birthday!

Thanks for your support this year and wishing you a happy festive season and all the best for 2011.

Regards
David

"Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen.
I would like to thank Gail and David for giving me the honour of opening this Summer Salon. Every exhibition opening is a celebration, for the artists, the art and also the curators, who are inspired to gather together a plethora of art works  which they enjoy having in their gallery and hopefully will inspire the audience to want to own something special. Tonight we also celebrate several anniversaries and an important one is that this is the 35th anniversary of the Hout Street Gallery. This tells us how devoted Gail and David are to art. This family lives with their art, their home is their gallery and the gallery is their home. We are fortunate that despite the vagaries of our economic and political  landscape, David and Gail have remained consistent in their vision of what the gallery should be:  a  Family run gallery, promoting and marketing local art and encouraging new and young artists to exhibit, which invites one to browse leisurely, is unintimidating and without any form of hard sell pressure.

Another anniversary to celebrate is that this year is 25 years since I first met Gail and David who made my transition to this part of the world less lonely. They were my first friends and their hospitality and loyalty has never changed. My first public exhibition was in this gallery. As a lecturer in ceramics it was encouraging to have my work and those of my students shown in this space. As a potter I am grateful that David and Gail have always included ceramics in their exhibitions. Often ceramics is seen as the poor cousin to Fine Art , however here ceramics is given equal prominence and careful consideration.

This year is also the anniversaries of a very personal nature for both Gail and David. Although one never asks a lady her age nor a gentleman the size of his bank balance, I have been told by Gail to tell you that this year she is 65 and that David is 70. I am sure I speak for all of us when I wish them many more years of happiness surrounded by their family, friends and art. May you continue to enrich our lives for many more years as you have done with this  year’s 35th Summer Salon.

It gives me great pleasure to declare this exhibition open."
Ralph Johnson

Jeffrey Appollis

In conversation with David Zetler about Paarl artist Jeffrey Appollis:

"I have had the pleasure of representing Paarl-based artist Jeffrey Appollis for the past six years.

He first came into the Gallery with his lecturers Hannes van Zyl and Ralph Johnson. I remember thinking that he did not speak much but after I saw the large still life he was presenting, I realised that his work spoke volumes! I was astounded by the maturity of his work. This piece was a painting illustrating a table holding household objects and a fan amongst the cluttered items caught my eye. It was not a hand fan used by elegant, heated ladies, but a mundane electrical fan.

What struck me was the marvellous use of colour and the slightly skewed presentation of the table and its accompanying objects, and I instantly agreed to take on Appollis' work .

This was the start of a wonderful association, and to this day, Jeffrey has presented an interesting array of landscapes, interiors, still lives and portrait studies. He employs a subtle palette, veering towards secondary and tertiary colours, with sufficient primary tones to offset this lower set of colours. His paintings have brought delight and joy to clients worldwide. Jeffrey is naturally talented, and his school friends confided in me that, as a scholar, he drew and painted with remarkable facility, far above his years.

He has built a loyal following and I believe his work is a good investment for the future.