a publication for
June/July 2025
VAL DE VIE ESTATE RESIDENTS
The Art Gallery We Call Home The Valley of Life is a canvas with endless artistic
notice, wander and create. Creativity is something to
this issue, we speak to four remarkable Val de Vie Estate
potential. Beautiful mountain ranges encircle us like a
nurture and cultivate. It is a powerful tool that brings joy,
artists – two musicians, an illustrator and a painter – who
landscape painting. Art and inspiration live in the trees,
helps us express our values and emotions, and builds
have done precisely that. But they’re not alone. The
the sky, the wings of the painted lady butterfly and in the
bridges between cultures. Val de Vie Estate resident and
Estate is alive with artists, from writers to photographers,
quiet moments of paying attention. Nature-inspired art
cover artist Magdalena Campbell says it’s wonderful to
designers, jewellers and ceramicists. Art takes many
may be one of the most significant catalysts for personal
be creative, “Since becoming a mother, inspiration has
forms and we’re excited to share just a few of these
renewal, helping us to slow down and reconnect with
taken on a whole new form.” Sometimes, creativity occurs
stories with you. This winter, we’re celebrating art in all
the world around us. Environmental Officer Simon Allen
quietly – during the stillness of a morning walk or while
its glory – in the changing seasons, in our homes and
calls nature “the largest art gallery on earth.” However,
sitting beside the calm Berg River. Other times, it comes
especially in our people. When inspiration strikes, seize it,
art isn’t only found in nature. It’s in the laughter and
with a bang. Thomas Merton once said, “Art enables us
utilise it and create art. And if you don’t like it? Just paint
curiosity of our children. We raise them to be artists – to
to find ourselves and lose ourselves simultaneously.” In
over it and start anew.