3. From Africa’s Heart
My earliest memories revolve around the heat and ‘bigness’ of my
beloved country, where the fiery, copper coloured sun loomed large
across the landscape of my deeply impressionable young mind.
Against this awesome physical backdrop the human frailties of society
could not be hidden. Values seemed upside-down, with precious
people and inherent beauty subordinated to the unreasonable
demands of a rapacious economic system and a harsh racial
anthropology.
After an African education in design and a period of national service I
left for Florida and the new world. Travel became a motif of my early
life and an inspiration for my future journeys. Although I did not know
it at the time, I was committing to both my freedom and my growth as
an artist. I was, as Robert Frost might have it, “choosing the path less
travelled by.” It was a path of self-discovery, of self-education and of
freedom embraced.
4. An explosion of
beauty
The beauty of the world opened up to me all across this glorious
globe of ours. From the jungles of Guatemala to the deserts of
Egypt, the banks of the Nile to the riotous floral colour of the Midi-
Atlas Mountains, I was inspired by beauty.
My philosophy of life came to me fully formed, not through the
mind but through my eyes
“making beautiful things on this planet in my
lifetime is enough.”
It became my sacred creative mantra. It embedded itself into my
soul; it etched itself onto the plaque above my workshop door and
even more deeply into my artist’s heart.
5. Working in copper
Now that the philosophy had been born it was important to be able to
answer the “out of what” question. Here the burning memory of the Copper
African sun came back to me. Like the African sun, the inherent beauty of
Copper was undeniable, the only answer.
I’ve been exploring Copper for 15 years now, pulling and pushing the
boundaries of what convention says can be done with the metal. I have
discovered Copper’s playful nature, which allows her environment to
experiment creatively with her textures and ever-changing patina.
Working in Copper is like a dance – at times a mystical duet – she provides
her texture to which I lend form and shape. As the swings emerge from the
copper, they divulge their own unique personalities, which grow and
develop over their lifetime.
6. “Nature and its subtleties
has always been my design
program. But opulence and
luxury offer the theatre that
I love to live with.
Copper is a wonderful
medium to merge these two
desires.”
7. Ripple
Inspired by the Eastern
Atlantic Ocean, Ripple
pays delicate homage
to the enfolding
emerald waves of the
sea.
The beautiful external
patina compliments the
otherworldly acoustics
experienced by those
sitting within.
Change photo to one
like the Gravity Swing
pic ***
8. “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world”.
Gravity is a more modern looking swing with a lustrously bright
copper patina. Designed to be enjoyed either outdoors or
indoors it is capable of sustained simple harmonic motion that is
deeply soothing.
Gravity
9. Delight
A delicate filigree of
mild steel above a
buttoned seat of
copper.
From your designer
bedroom to under the
apple tree, Delight is
beautiful in any setting.
11. Ostara
Ostara pays
elegant homage to
the goddess of
fertility with its
perfect balance of
the voluptuous and
the maternal.
Big enough for two
to luxuriate, curl
up and peacefully
drift away.
14. Moon
“Come make love to me in
a garden when the day is
done. Cover me in
moonlight ‘gainst the
jealous sun”
Moon embodies the divine
feminine in a filigree of
ineluctable rings and
crescents
16. Living with copper
Copper swings are gifts of form and gifts of metal, beneficiaries are
enfolded, encircled, enriched by their relationship with her.
Everyone wants copper in their life and has done so since before the
Bronze Age. When crafted, Copper rests alongside Gold as a true gift of
the gods.
Need more here****
Myburgh Designs swings are beautiful pieces that you will pass down
for your children and grand-children to enjoy.
17. “For in this world to
make beautiful things is
enough”
