I got a call from Rick Melvill (of Melvill and Moon), co-owner with Sue Melvill (of Unplugged) of the Karoo Art Hotel in Barrydale, to ask if I would like to be the next artist to showcase their art on flags that will be flanking the hotel. Well, I was absolutely thrilled by the idea and obviously answered with a resounding, “Yes!”

They asked me to come up with 12 Karoo-themed designs to go on the 12 flagpoles. The project, from start to finish, took around 5 months to complete, with the creative team at the hotel meticulously choosing the designs and which printer would make this project truly come to life.

Well, two weeks ago they went up! And we were all just over-the-moon with the impact it made in brightening up Van Riebeek Street. Thank you so much, Rick and Sue, for your Barrydale-beautifying vision and for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this project.

You can see a collage of the flags below:

Rick asked me to come down to the hotel on the morning the flags went up, to do a short video about how the flags were designed and some of the work that went into creating them.

You can view that here:

_{Video credit: Rick Melvill.}

Gavin Huart (below), the manager at the Karoo Art Hotel, called me to come and unbox the flags with him. What an exciting treat that was! It felt like Christmas had come early.

We took 12 short videos of each flag as they were being unveiled (I will release those videos soon – so don’t forget to follow this blog).

Gavin was instrumental in getting these flag images logo-ready, colour-coordinated, and into production. He also found himself running around town, trying to source a sewing machine to get some last minute work done to the flags on the day they went up, and doing all the said sewing work himself! A man of many talents. Thank you for all you hard work, Gavin.

And thank you to the Barrydale resident who lent the hotel her sewing machine.

The artwork on the flags was taken from segments of my paintings which I’ll go into in my next blog, so again, stay tuned and thanks for coming on my flag journey with me.

If you are in the Barrydale area, why not pop in at the hotel and view the flags yourself? They offer exquisite artsy accommodation if you fancy resting your head overnight (or longer), excellent fine dining, a bakery that serves the best scones and coffee I’ve had to date, a gorgeous private garden with pool area, and a bar for the wary traveler (bar menu also available). Visit them at www.karooarthotel.co.za. And, again, thank you to all the staff at the hotel for making this vision a reality! You are so appreciated.

You can purchase prints of these flags HERE.

See each individual flag HERE: https://cherieroedirksen.com/2023/09/04/the-12-individual-flags-hanging-at-the-karoo-art-hotel/