Gavin Thomson’s Epic Wave will be one of the pieces on display at an exhibition of his work at the Peak Cafe in Fish Hoek.
Noordhoek cartoonist Gavin Thomson, who is best known for the Treknet and Mama Taxi cartoon strips, will be exhibiting his work in Fish Hoek.
Under the Magnifying Glass will open at the Peak Cafe on Saturday December 3, at 11am, and run until Friday January 13.
It took a magnifying glass to execute much of the detail in pieces to be displayed, including the 2020 Lockdown Block and Epic Wave prints, hence the name of the exhibition, says Thomson.
“I started drawing during the Lockdown Block during the first three-week lockdown in 2020. I would post a new picture every day on Instagram and then people started to make suggestions for the following day,” he says.
“It now stands as a reminder of the crazy things we did in lockdown like home brewing, exercising, and Zoom meetings to name but a few.”
Epic Wave is part of a series of surf cartoon prints, in which he used a magnifying lamp to fit literally hundreds of surfers, bodyboarders, stand-up paddleboarders, kiteboarders, sharks, penguins, and many more characters into the print, which has around 750 individual characters all on one wave.
A selection of original pen-and-ink Treknet strips and comics will also be available to buy.
Treknet, created by Thompson and Dave Gomersall, is about everyday life in South Africa. First published weekly in 2005, it has appeared in newspapers across South Africa.
In 2013, Treknet was turned into a 13-part award-winning sitcom for kykNET.
Thomson has also illustrated numerous children’s books, including the And Friends series written by Roy Harding, Jesus stories for Little Zebra Books and The Bungle in the Jungle by John Bush.
Thomson says it took him many years to discover what he was good at after nearly failing art in school.
“Now I like to encourage everyone young and old to follow their dream or passion and find out what it is that gets them excited to get up and go to work each day.”
Carrie-Ann Witchell, Peak Cafe's general manager, says the cafe holds monthly exhibits for free to help artists reach a wider audience
"We want to help emerging artists get their name out there and exhibit their work because we know it can be difficult for some to make ends meet. The exhibition is free, however, artists are asked to donate 10% of any sales to a charity of their choice.“
To find out more Thomson’s work or the exhibition, email gavinthomson2@gmail.com or call 021 789 0274.