Daleen Kruger piece to support animal care

NIEU-BETHESDA NEWS - Daleen Kruger has an incredible love for animals, and dogs especially, hold a special place in her heart. She created this piece to convey hope for the souls of dogs who have suffered in the past and who need to find peace in the present.

So explains Victoria Nance, one of the organisers of the art exhibition and auction in aid of the Camdeboo Sterilisation Initiative (CSI) Special Projects, that is taking place from 16 to 19 December at the Sports Club in Nieu Bethesda.

Victoria says the base of the sculpture has been created from salvaged wood from Bali, which touches on the idea that the plight of rural dogs is an international concern, and not just here in this country.

The sculpture itself has been carved from cypress wood, from a tree that fell over in a storm nearby. Cypress is one of the oldest symbols of mourning, dating back to classical mythology.

"But, far from being melancholic, this piece celebrates, through the carving of human figures winding up the legs of the dog, how we have walked with dogs over the centuries and how they stand by us through difficult times and heal us through their presence. How we shackle and control them is represented through the wirework around the two necks of the dog figure, who is facing in two directions – looking into the past at the souls of dogs long gone and forward into a future where all will be loved the way that they should.

"His ribs symbolise the cage in which their unrecognised souls have been trapped.

"But there is always hope. The firebird that rests upon his back is a Native American totem that frees the spirit of those in pain and carries them away to eternal peace and joy.

"Firebird, Come Take My Soul is not only a powerful sculpture, it also is a poem to dogs and their interconnectedness, not only to humans, but to one another and, more widely, the natural world. It speaks to how we need to recognise how truly blessed humanity is to have such special beings looking after us, both physically and spiritually."

Daleen Kruger has created this piece to convey hope for the souls of dogs who have suffered in the past and who need to find peace in the present. It will be up for auction on at the Sports Club in Nieu-Bethesda. The money will go to support rural animal care.