A Scarecrow in a Baroque Garden

A Scarecrow in a Baroque Garden (1972) painted by the South African artist Judith Mason (1938- 2016) is part of a series of paintings with the same theme. The themes of the scarecrow in Mason's work has a double purpose, scaring off and also for protection. This painting depicts a scarecrow dressed in a rich baroque gown, with only it's arms visible and reaching out. Three large and what seems to be, magical flowers are placed next to the scarecrow. Further away is a small birdcage with two birds floating or drifting away. Judith Mason, born Judith Seelander Menge was a South African artist who worked in oil, pencil, printmaking and mixed media. Her work is rich in symbolism and mythology, displaying a rare technical virtuosity. She was born in Pretoria in 1938 and obtained a BA degree in Fine Arts at the University of the Witwatersrand in 1960. She taught painting at the University of the Witwatersrand and occasionally at other institutions on a casual basis, e.g. University of Pretoria, Michaelis School of Art. From 1962 to 2002 she exhibited frequently in South Africa. She has works in all major South African art collections as well as in the collections of private and public bodies in Europe and the U.S.A. Public commissions include tapestries in collaboration with Margaret Stephens. Recent commissions include stained glass window designs for the Great Park Synagogue in Johannesburg. She represented South Africa at the Venice Biennale in 1966 and took part in various Valparaiso and Sao Paulo Biennales in the nineteen seventies.