Zimbabwean-born artist, Jeanne-Marie Webb, who now lives in Cape Town with her husband and two teenage daughters, has put rooibos very firmly on the global art world's centre stage as she continues to bedazzle art-lovers from far-flung places with her delicate paintings on none other than rooibos teabags.
The concept behind her year-long "One Face a Day" project, which was recently exhibited in the Mother City, started a few years ago when she searched tirelessly for the perfect miniature substrate for her paintings.
"I happened to stumble upon a tattered old rooibos teabag one night whilst rummaging through one of my old paper boxes, and I thought, why not? It proved to be the perfect canvas for what I had in mind and I absolutely love the concept of creating unique pieces of art on a teabag," says Webb.
Through the years, she's tested various teabags, but it's the red residue on rooibos teabags, when mixed with a primer, that results in the perfect skin-tone for her portraits.
"I had no idea that the medium would become such a hit. During my 'One Face a Day' project, scores of Facebook friends asked if they could join me, which later evolved into an online workshop as I shared the process of how to paint creative portraits on tiny rooibos tea bags with art-enthusiasts from around the world. The growing interest led to hundreds of artists flocking to buy rooibos tea on Amazon, and there's no sign of this trend letting up just yet," says Webb.
This past week's online auction which was open to international buyers, saw her selling in excess of 150 paintings to overseas buyers. About 130 was sold to local art collectors at her recent exhibition. She is also booked to do another online auction later this year which will include some of her other works and remaining rooibos teabag paintings. Interested buyers can go to www.jeannemarieart.com for more info.
Webb has also been invited to visit the US later this year to share her process of painting on rooibos teabags with various studios.
