Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/433799
hallmark—are doing it at their own peril. Predators and prey are on equal footing, which arguably heightens the focus of artistic perception. "Everywhere we've gone, we've stalked animals as hunters would, but to get the best photographs for research and to convey the vulnerability that exists with the survival of Africa's most beloved animals— even though sometimes it was quite dangerous," Van Schalkwyk admits. "I have been the youngster between Ross, David, and Mopho, and fortunately, for the most part they knew what they were doing!" Those relatively few Americans who have seen the Great Zambezi know it is worth every liquid ounce of the powerful magic ascribed to it. Born unpretentiously—and without drama—in the dambo of Zambia, the river rises westward into Angola and touches upon the border of Namibia. Curving around, it makes a hard turn back again, this time on an ambitious run toward the Indian Ocean, collecting great momentum as it churns through Mozambique. The Zambezi is touched by the shade of miombo subtropical woodlands, ventures near the flanks of the Okavango Delta, then caterwauls over Victoria Falls on its way to Lake Kariba. The fourth-longest river in all of Africa, the Zambezi divides Zambia from Zimbabwe and cuts through rock, savanna, veld, and the strata of time en route to Mozambique, fueling the legends of ancient tribes and weaving together an almost unbelievable assemblage of wildlife and habitat. "The Zambezi and its tendrils are the lifeblood of the region," says Parker. Apart from photographers who have explored the river valley piecemeal, there's never been a cohesive fine-art interpretation of the watershed as seen through the eyes of wildlife artists. B orn in 1981 in the East Rand city of Benoni, South Africa, Van Schalkwyk says he grew up speaking Afrikaans; English is not his mother tongue. During his youth, his religious family made trips to Kruger National Park and his country's other reserves, but by and large he was a town kid. Later, he spent two years working on a dairy farm where his feelings for nature intensified. As he received fine-art training and an informal apprenticeship with painter Marié Vermeulen Breedt, he started to develop a representational style in which the lines between realism and impressionism were blurred. WILDERNESS THEATRE by JACO VAN SCHALKWyK