Businessinsider.co.za | This SA startup lets you 'forge' art by Pierneef, Van Gogh and Irma Stern – paint-by-numbers style

A Paint by Numbers Pierneef alongside an original. Image: Paint by Numbers.

• A local business lets you recreate famous South African artworks in your home – using a paint-by-numbers kit.
• Among the options are several iconic works by artists like Jacobus Hendrik Pierneef and Irma Stern, the originals of which sold for millions on auction.
• The idea isn't, of course, to pass them off as originals – but to allow people intimidated by blank canvases to experience the joy of painting.
• For more stories, go to www.BusinessInsider.co.za.

A South African business lets you recreate iconic works painted by some of the country's most influential artists. 

But unlike pricey art lessons or years of honing techniques, the idea behind the business is to make painting accessible to everyone – using an intricate but easy-to-follow paint-by-numbers system.

Founder Wineen Swart says she had the idea to start Paint By Numbers after receiving a gift of a paint by numbers frog from her husband. 

"I have always been interested in art, but I am no artist, and I found it a bit daunting to go buy a canvas and paint and everything you need to try to paint," Swart told Business Insider South Africa.

She loved painting it and was hooked on the concept but couldn't find a reliable supply of quality local equivalents. Imports from abroad took months to arrive, and there were no quality South African artists to choose from.

Swart managed to secure a supplier and chose designs – and after testing local interest, decided to start creating a South African range just months before the Covid-19 lockdown.

"During lockdown, it was tricky to increase order quantities and manage stock levels, but we managed. To grow, I had to invest in larger quantities, and I had to create my own brand to set me apart from similar products that started coming into our market once I launched my product," says Swart.

Swart partnered with a local designer to create eye-catching packaging and unique images. She secured high-quality products to distinguish herself from others, including using stretched, rather than loose, canvases, and provides multiple paints and brushes, and a simple wall hanging kit for those who want to display their artworks.

The Paint by Numbers range started with 25 options and about 1000 canvases. Swart initially chose artworks she liked or knew, like those from Van Gogh, Matisse, Monet, and Munch, along with a few popular images she thought people would like to paint and display in their houses.

But her focus was always on getting renowned local artists into her store to allow South Africans to paint famous scenes from around the country. 

She started with works from Jacobus Hendrik Pierneef and Irma Stern - the originals of which have sold for millions on auction - for practical copyright reasons.

Among them is Pierneef's "Farm Jonkershoek with Twin Peaks Beyond, Stellenbosch", painted in 1928. It was one of South Africa's most expensive artworks ever sold when it went at auction for over R20 million - but it is available in a complete paint-by-numbers kit on stretched canvas for under R400.

Swart also stocks several iconic artworks by Irma Stern - who, in 2011, sold South Africa's most expensive painting for R39 million. 

Stern works in the paint-by-numbers collection include "Malay Lady in Yellow", which sold for R7 million, and her "Still life with poppies, calla lilies and fruit", which sold for R2.1 million.

Despite giving people the tools to essentially forge famous artworks in their homes, Swart says there's nothing illegal about the process. According to South African law, most works are protected for the artist's lifetime plus 50 years after their death, which qualifies both Stern and Pierneef.

Swart is, however, looking to include other more contemporary famous South African artists in her offering - which has been a slightly more complex process.

"There are a few South African artworks I think would work wonderfully, for instance, those by Erik Laubscher, Gerard Sekota and Vladimir Tretchikoff. It is difficult to reach the right people to discuss the option of using artworks for paint by numbers though, but I will keep trying as I like to offer my customers the very best of South African art to paint," she says.

Despite paint-by-numbers historically being in the realm of children's entertainment, Swart says adults - including some established artists - have taken to it enthusiastically.

"I find the act of painting quite therapeutic, and as some artists who buy from me have said, sometimes it is nice not to have to think about what to paint, but rather just to sit and paint," she says. "You are able to adapt the canvas to your level of confidence or expertise, but even without any experience, you end up with something you will love." 

Swart says she's received only positive feedback from clients, many of whom thought they'd never be able to paint. She also receives regular business from an established artist who buys works for his partner so that they can paint together, and organises paint-by-numbers parties and date nights.

The most popular works in their collection include paintings of Muizenberg, Table Mountain, and Old Hermanus Harbour. But the best seller is Pierneef's Bushveld, which Swart says lends itself perfectly to paint by numbers. 

"The composition and colours are beautiful, and I think the canvas is just the right level of 'challenging' to keep you interested but not overwhelmed," she says.