Karen Bezuidenhout - who now shares her time between Africa and Santa Barbara - was born and raised in the wine country of Stellenbosch, South Africa. It was here that she began her lifelong love of riding horses and where her rich, earthy color palette and her sense of adventure began to develop. Drawing and sketching throughout her life, she joined a small Stellenbosch art school situated in an old wine cellar after being consumed with a desire to paint. A few years later, Karen relocated with her family to California, attended a course in painting and color at the College of Marin and soon after moved to Santa Barbara. Her palette of chocolate browns, olives, ochre, crimson and burnished golds draw from her time in Africa and are complimented with vibrant blues and greens from the ocean, reflecting the influence of her Southern California lifestyle. Her favorite subject matter are her own loves and experiences - horses on beach rides, in fields, and trekking across the Namibian desert; farm houses, Moroccan villages, rolling hills, chickens; elephants and a variety of African wildlife; sailboats and beach walkers with dogs. Ask Karen about a particular painting and she'll likely have an enchanting story about it - a journey, a dream or an inspired moment. Karen’s work has been described as "earthy, soulful and primitive, yet sophisticated". Her paintings have been featured on the cover of Robert Redford's Sundance catalog and are found in the homes of collectors and celebrities around the world including North America, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Mexico, Turks & Caicos and Africa.