Visions of Africa: Faith-Full in Dumphries

When Ian Yallop was young, his father forbade him from painting, saying he would never make money. (When Yallop’s paintings began to sell, his father apologized and, years later, he too became an artist.) Visions of Africa: Faith-Full in Dumphries features Yallop’s large oil-on-canvas portraits of the children of Dumphries, South Africa. “I started off as a wildlife artist and got involved with Pride ’n Purpose a few years ago,” Yallop tells SFR of the non-profit organization he helped found. Pride ’n Purpose funds the construction of clinics, houses, schools and other projects in Africa; proceeds from the sale of his paintings benefit the organization. “The kids have always been a part of my life: the visions that I had of these kids, the photographs that have been taken,” Yallop says. Yallop’s visions became his paintings, which bypass the sentimentality that paintings of impoverished children so often evoke. Yallop captures their humanity with a discerning eye. The paintings are touching but not heavy-handed, emotional but not overwhelming, inspiring but not
saccharine. (Charlotte Jusinski)