The first time Anton Smit heard the name Michelangelo, as a child, he thought the artist was literally an angel. Learning later that he was a mere man – “with a surname, Buonarroti!” – fuelled his own ambitions. If the Renaissance sculptor could craft such mesmerising tributes to the human form as David, why couldn’t Smit?
Born in Boksburg in 1954, Smit devoted himself to sculpture from an early age and by the ’70s was winning competitions. It was pure grind, he says, that got him where he is today, with a staff of more than 30 helping him run an empire that is as much about industry as it is about art — studios in Gauteng and the Western Cape, a sculpture park, and an operation that handles everything from casting to sales to installations.
Using mostly steel, fibreglass and bronze, he is best known for his imposing heads and colossal nudes, which can be seen at sites as far afield as Delaire Graff Estate in Stellenbosch; the Century City Art Trail in Cape Town; Benguela Cove near Hermanus; and Steyn City in Midrand.
This month, he launched his latest exhibition at Creation Wines in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, about a 90-minute drive from Cape Town. Already a destination in its own right – it consistently places in the top 10 at the tourism-focused World’s 50 Best Vineyards awards – Creation is known for its cool-climate chardonnays and pinot noirs and its wine-and-food pairing menu. It has a long record of doubling up as a gallery too, with revolving exhibitions in its Tasting Room restaurant and the surrounding fynbos gardens. As Carolyn Martin, co-owner and creative director, explains, “It’s not just about what’s in the glass. It’s also everything around the glass.”
Elevated at 290m on a mountain ridge, with vine-covered slopes stretching into the hills, Creation is an apt canvas for “Walking in the Spirit of Creation”, which spans different periods of Smit’s career. Monumental figures set against the backdrop of vineyards and dams along with life-sized and smaller works around the garden and restaurant inject even more drama into an already dramatic scene.
On a walkabout at the exhibition opening, Smit ties creation to his own motives and particularly his fascination with the human form.“ It has been my life’s mission to honour my creator and what he loves most – people.” As he leads his audience from nude to nude, he jokes about such sculptors being seen as womanisers. In fact, he argues, the human form is “the most beautiful thing on Earth. And nudity is innocence.”
He isn’t keen on interpreting his works for others – “Sometimes, the deep and profound reason behind a work is simply that it looks cool” – and doesn’t like to title them either. “I want the viewer to think what they think it’s about,” he says.
The very next sculpture, though, is all the more moving because of the story he tells – about a day diving with his brother. Smit had been reluctant to go, but somehow felt compelled to. After they headed out into rough seas, the weather suddenly calmed. “The ocean was like lead.”
A ray of sunlight pierced the clouds and sliced into the water. It turned out to be one of the most wonderful dives of his life. Two months later, his brother was dead, taken quickly by an aggressive cancer. The sculpture, a sinewy man with angel wings, leaning forward as if about to dive, with just one pointed toe on the ground, is “an homage to my brother and to the moment the sun hit the water”.
There are several iterations, too, of his signature faces — serene, oversized, blue-tinged or brassy, their surfaces rippling with ridges or peppered with holes. To explain, he simply paraphrases a Leonard Cohen lyric, “The cracks are how the light gets in.”
THE WINE LEADS
“Walking in the Spirit of Creation” is not only the title of the exhibition, but also the name of the Tasting Room’s six-chapter wine-and-food pairing menu. Creation changes its menu four times a year, always emphasising organic and seasonal ingredients, but at the heart of the experience is a simple philosophy, as Martin puts it, “The wine leads, and the dish responds.” In other words, each course takes one of the farm’s wines as its starting point.
At the same time, the menus draw on Ayurvedic principles and are designed to be anti-inflammatory, with zero gluten, added sugar or dairy. If you think that sounds like the culinary equivalent of sensible shoes, prepare to be amazed. There is nothing remotely austere about the experience: the plating is gorgeous; the dishes still feel indulgent; and no detail is too small. Even a glass of water is dressed up with a tiny heart cut from a lime leaf floating on top.
Each chapter demands attention. When a celeriac rösti with garden greens and kimchi is followed by agedashi tofu with sesame, herbs and ginger, one can’t help but pause to sip the semillon, then the viognier, and appreciate how all of one’s senses respond.
The most theatrical pairing comes with the chardonnay. Before the trout with avocado, roasted fennel and caviar arrives, we are handed a polished periwinkle shell to hold to our ears as we sip – encouraged to hear the same Atlantic whose breezes from 8km away shape the very vines from which the wine is made. This is an exercise in “neuro-enology”, the idea that sound, aroma, memory and sensation shape flavour.
Later comes the iron-rich winter centrepiece: springbok shank with polenta and winter greens.
In the final flourish, Smit’s art takes a bow on the plate. My dark chocolate fondant arrives with a small chocolate replica of one of his masks dreaming serenely alongside it, a detail that beautifully underlines the notion that, here, creativity is king. It’s the sweetest touch — no added sugar required.
• The wine-and-food pairing is from R1,595, with a plant-based option available. A guided walk through Smit’s exhibition can be arranged. To book, visit creationwines.com, email reservations@creationwines.com or call 028-212-1107.
