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I stumbled across a rusted sculpture garden of artist and former Rhodes University art lecturer, George Coutouvidis. “It’s all rubbish,” he states in a rural English accent. “I gather up waste metal on my walks and put it together.” Each contorted piece is wired onto a long metal pole stabilized in cement under the dusty earth, out of which the creation appears to grow as if in a bizarre field of sunflowers.
George started off with three of these free-standing rusted iron sculptures, but then got carried away and has filled his front yard with one hundred wind chime alternatives. They feature old kettles, semi-spoked cycle wheels and mudguards, tin cans pitted with holes for which he can find no explanation, and the odd radiator grill that resembles the shape of a zulu shield.
Wander like Alice through this wonderland, and you enter his studio, in which he paints more unusual artworks inspired by old masters like Goya or Michael Angelo, to which he then adds his own contemporary twist. This could be anything from a fire-eating devil in the centre of his version of the Cistene Chapel ceiling, or a 747 flying over an Anglo-Boer war battle scene. There are other artists in Prince Albert, and I am told the town is attracting more creative residents in a similar way to Nieu Bethesda. The Prince Albert Gallery showcases some great regional talents like black and white photographer Derek McKenzie, whose clear, graphic, empty landscapes and close up flora juxtaposes the quirky and mundane in an eerie fashion.
Ceramicist and local masseur Brent Phillips-White expresses his creative energies by adorning slip-cast plates, often featuring hands and the written word. And my favourite artist in the gallery is Charmaine Haines, whose iconic ceramic wall pieces derive their style irreverently from mediaeval and baroque exuberance and imagery.
I only spent two nights in Prince Albert, and got to do my own version of the historic guided walk, and didn’t have time to get on a horse as well as a bike, or hike the scenic trail overlooking the town. I did however, pop into Gay’s Dairy to buy some of her award winning cheeses, and mingled with locals filling their containers with fresh-from-the-udder Guernsey milk.
I also sampled the local port, olives and great hospitality, and was told by the manager of the 5-star De Bergkant Country House that 3-nights is the bare minimum you need to stay in Prince Albert. I might just have to go back for the required minimum, as I am currently one night short and will have to start all over again. © Copyright Carrie Hampton. The author’s impressions and recommendations are purely personal and you can contact her on carrieh@iafrica.com or www.travelwriter.co.za | 
