Desiree Holmes

Desiree was born in Nelspruit, South Africa in 1956. Her childhood was spent on a farm close to the Kruger National Park. She was encouraged by her mother to express her creativity and took art classes from a young age. She lived on a farm next door to Zakkie Eloff, a prominent wildlife painter and was exposed to a vibrant artistic community.

She went on to study Textile Design and qualified in 1976 with a Diploma in Art and Design. She worked in a textile design studio before getting married and subsequently moved to various
places with her husband who was an engineer. In 1987 the family moved to Malawi where she became the Chairlady of the Art Group, an organisation that promoted and supported local
artists with education and exhibitions. She painted professionally there using watercolours as her medium and exhibited there at the annual Art Group Exhibition. Her paintings were mostly
landscapes and village life. She taught art at Bishop McKenzie International School in Lilongwe to GCSE level for 5 years before moving back to South Africa with her family.

She continued to paint on and off and as her children grew older, she has been able to dedicate more time to her art. She crossed over to oils before moving to Namibia in 2007 and has now
moved to painting in acrylics. In 2008 she exhibited a series titled “On Being a Woman” at the Fine Art Gallery Swakopmund. Whilst her first love is figure painting she has also painted
landscapes series inspired by the beauty and colours of the Namibian wilds.