Visual Art

Riaan has been working in a representational style for most of his early artistic career. In 1999 he won the junior entrepreneurial award of the year in Polokwane, South Africa, for making art and selling his art in local art shops.

In 2016 to 2019 Riaan embraced conceptual art as a modality to explore the notion of visibility and produced a large body of work which was exhibited at Trent Gallery in Waterkloof, Pretoria, and Respek Gallery in Waverley, Pretoria North.

In 2021 Riaan completed and sold his Anima Mundi painting, translated to ‘the soul of the world’, which is a surrealistic piece based on a dream he had, visually mediated through a sketch, digital art, light projection, and finally oil paint on stretched canvas. Anima Mundi forms part of his surrealistic stream of artworks.

As part of his artistic practice Riaan accepts commisions. In 2018 Riaan completed 32 acrylic on masonite artworks for Freehand Studio, which currently forms part of the interior decor in the Rolfontein Nature Reserve chalets in South Africa. 

Art Merit Awards

Merit Award: Sanlam junior entrepreneur of the year as a self-employed artist (1999)
Merit Award: Springs arts and music festival, A+ Diploma for painting (2000)
Merit Award: Johannesburg East Rand Arts competition, 1st place for painting (2000)
Merit Award: TUT, Certificate for best overall achievement in Drawing (2009)

Art Exhibitions

Haenertsburg Arts & Crafts Fair, Haenertsburg (1998)
Bosveld Jagters Vereniging, Pietersburg [Polokwane] (2000)
Marie Vermeulen Breedt Gallery, Brooklyn (2009)
Chris Tugwell Gallery, Brooklyn (2009)
Dimitrov Gallery, Dullstroom (2013)
Golden Goose Art Gallery, Southdowns (2015)
Solo exhibition, Visibility, Trent Art Gallery, Waterkloof (2019)
Group exhibition, Respek Gallery, Waverley (2019)