Dylan Lewis’s sculpture garden is set on the fringes of Stellenbosch where oversized wildlife sculptures are framed by fynbos and mountain contours.
Predator and prey coexist as lion and impala, though cast in bronze, still exude a sense of movement and energy.
Lewis is known for his raw, dynamic style. More than 60 sculptures inhabit the garden, each placed with intention among indigenous flora.
Lewis was born into a family of artists. His father, Robin, a sculptor known for stylised forms in sheet metal, notably elegant birds, shaped his early direction. His path changed in the mid-1990s when he saw a leopard at a sanctuary. Lewis sketched and studied the animal; this led to his focus on Africa’s predators — captured in a state of muscular grace.
He started working on fragmented human forms — torsos without faces and figures emerging from stone. Part of this was through themes of transformation and the subconscious, his art drawing on Greek mythology and the work of Carl Jung, the Swiss psychiatrist who founded the school of analytical psychology.
Lewis delves into themes of transformation, wilderness and the unconscious. His male figures are taut with restrained power. The more sensual female forms evoke nature’s fluidity, says Diane Harper, a guide and artist who leads private walkabouts through the garden.
Lewis’s work is collected throughout the world; he is represented by Everard Read in South Africa. He is one of the few living artists to have had multiple solo auctions at Christie’s, the London auction house through which he began selling his art.
Solo auctions are rare for a living artist, says Harper.
In 1997 Stellenbosch billionaire Johann Rupert asked Lewis to create a leopard for his Leopard Creek golf course on the border of the Kruger National Park. During their conversation, Lewis proposed a series of 18 sculptures instead, one for each hole, following the leopard’s movements over a day. “An evocation of the palpable menace that lies just beyond the manicured greens: a reminder of the wild, untamed periphery beyond the man-made oasis” is a line on the Leopard Creek Country Club website describing the sculptures.
The Stellenbosch garden began in 2009 when Lewis brought in an excavator to create a play area for his children. That soon blossomed into a carefully designed, 7ha sanctuary in harmony with its environment. Former horse paddocks were transformed and are maintained by a team of horticulturalists and gardeners.
Visitors can explore the garden by booking a self-guided route with a detailed map or as part of a guided tour. Harper is a highlight, peppering her tour with anecdotes and artist insights, pointing to oak trees forming a beautiful window when referring to a female torso.
One quote on a plaque is from US author Joseph Campbell, who writes about primal urges, animalistic nature and the way modern beings close ourselves in and separate ourselves from nature. Several more are from poet Ian McCallum who, as well as having been a Springbok rugby star, pursued medicine, becoming a psychiatrist and Jungian psychologist. McCallum has written about ecological intelligence in his poetry.
While the garden initially drew mostly international collectors and enthusiasts, more South Africans are discovering it. There’s a growing appreciation for its beauty and depth — and for the man behind the work.
Lewis, who lives and works in Cape Town, with a studio in Simon’s Town, spends his free time rock-climbing, hiking and surfing.
His artistic process remains tactile and traditional. He begins with clay, sculpts and then casts, using the ancient “lost wax” technique: a silicon mould, a hollow wax copy, a ceramic casing, and, finally, molten bronze. Once cooled, the outer shell is chipped away to reveal the final form — primal, powerful, often fragmented, but whole in spirit.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.