Peter Diggery

After matriculating Peter studied graphic art at the Port Elizabeth School of Art.&nbsp;&nbsp; He worked hard producing quality and originality.&nbsp;&nbsp; In his final year he was rewarded and won the prestigious college medal for top student.

In 1963 he started his advertising agency career in Cape Town. He worked as a creative director in many product categories but one that seemed to follow him wherever he worked was the motor industry &ndash; Firestone and GoodYear;&nbsp; BP and Caltex;&nbsp; VW and Opel:&nbsp; Isuzu trucks and Yamaha motorcycles. TV commercials he art directed have won creative awards abroad including a gold medal at the New York International Film Festival.

In 1992 he decided that, as most of his colleagues were younger than his own children, 30 years as an ad man was enough. He and his wife moved to the rural village of Greyton in the picturesque Overberg area of the Western Cape.

"Portraiture was what I wanted to do, a natural transition from making a brand look good to giving a portrait client subtle enhancements. Generally ladies get the slender treatment, men the macho approach. (I have to admit doing a portrait of a rumply old man is great fun).

One thing I have noted through the years is that clients never question your palette, even when the colour has been quite adventurous. All except Lynn Roberts, a delightfully feminine lady, who has a tough as teak son named Ian. I painted his portrait and on seeing it she said "Oh Peter, I've seen my son in many ways, but never in pink!" But she loved it.

Acrylics is my chosen medium, colour, my passion. It's either right or wrong, there are no rules - just instinct!

I love wild dogs, now known as the painted hunting dog, it's my favourite animal and I've painted lots of close-up studies of them. They seem to have "soul". Cheetahs are another favourite. Over the years I have done hundreds of African wildlife studies in pencil and paint.

Whatever the subject, whether portrait, wildlife or Overberg landscape, I always try to achieve a feeling of spontaneity, of expressiveness whilst retaining the element of realism. Using the biggest paint brush possible goes a long way to achieving this."

Peter's work can be viewed in selected Western Cape galleries. He has completed many commissions which hang in public institutions and private homes all over the world.

View all artworks by Peter Diggery

Young Elephants

Pencil

41cm x 30cm

Rhino Bull

Pencil

41cm x 30cm

Leopard

Pencil

57cm x 41cm