A journey through the Owl House

For more than a century reclusive artist Helen Martins worked on the transformation of her home in the isolated Karoo village of Nieu Bethesda, creating an intriguing world rich in personal symbolism and universal meaning. The garden became a sculpture yard populated by a throng of pilgrims and camels, owls, mermaids and other creatures, while the walls of the house were coated in colour and crushed glass to create sublime and unsettling effects. Anne Emslie leads us on a guided tour through the rooms of the house and along the paths of the sculpture yard, helping us towards an understanding of Helen Martins' remarkable vision.