The Hero Within
Project Overview
The hero within is the quiet strength each person carries, often unnoticed until life demands courage, resilience, compassion or LEADERSHIP. It is the inner voice that urges us to stand up when we feel like giving up, to choose integrity when it’s difficult, and to act with kindness even when no one is watching. This inner hero is also shaped by the wisdom of our ancestors—those who came before us and carved paths through hardship, triumph, and change. Their stories, values, and sacrifices echo through us, offering guidance when we feel lost and reminding us that we are part of something larger than ourselves. In many ways, their resilience becomes our compass, helping the hero within rise through everyday choices that define who we become. This is my story of courage and what you will see is how history, myth, past experiences have shaped my story in bringing out the warrior within.
The Hero
Suritah Wignall talks about The Hero:
Transcript
So now we’re heading into my visioning of what my inner hero looks like. So there are four images in this section. In the first image in image one, it’s a very simple, rough sketch of my hero. She is staring off into the distance as if she’s in her warrior pose. She is wearing a beautiful African shawl as well as she’s holding a bundle of imphepho.
Imphepho is equivalent to what the indigenous community uses, sage. So in image one, it’s a graphite line drawing of my inner hero. And on her African shawl are the designs, flower designs. Those flowers are called gladiolus. Those are my favorite flowers.
And as we get further into this project, me explaining this project, I will tell you why imphepho and gladiolus are important to me. So in image 2, I have transferred my image onto canvas. And as you can see, it’s a line drawing outlined. My painting is outlined in burnt umber paint. This process is called the cartoon.
It’s what a lot of classical painters used or did, like, hundreds of years ago. And so how this technically would work, I would draw my image onto tracing paper and then use that outline and place it onto the canvas. But I didn’t have a lot of time for that because this residency was, it was packed, but it was for four months. And so I had to outline my drawing onto the canvas and then go over the outline in burnt umber.
In image 3, there’s more detail of my outline. And basically this is breaking down where I’m going to put my colors, so I added in more lines in her face, on her. On her neck and her chest, as well as on her shirt.
This helps me to determine where I’m going to place my colors. And in image four is the undertone. The undertone is important to laying down the actual colors of my painting. So as you can see, this painting is not, it’s not complete because the process of working on a classical painting takes a very long time.
So what I wanted to share, I wanted to share the stages of classical painting. So from choosing my image, in my case, I drew out my image. And this is just one example of what my hero looks like to me. I know I’m going to come up with other examples. So starting with my sketch of my inner hero, and then going over it with the line drawing, that being the cartoon, and then filling in the detail, and then doing the undertone painting once this is completed, because I have to go over, do another layer of undertone.
And once this is completed, that’s when I will start to fill in my colors. So because I didn’t have enough time to complete my piece, I at least wanted to share the beautiful line drawing, like the process of classical painting. And I love this process. So I’m happy to share share this part with you. Thank you.
These are the images of “My Hero.” Image 1 is a rough graphite sketch of what I believe my inner hero looks like. It was important that there be a similarity in likeness. She is wrapped in an African shawl, which is decorated with gladiolus designs. Further down, I explain why the gladiolus is important to me. In her hands, she is holding a bundle of imphepho. I also explain the importance of Imphepho further down
In Image 2, the outer lining of the image is shown. In classical painting, this would be called the cartoon. I simply outlined the image before going into detail.”
In Image 3, I continue refining the line details, using them as a guide to map out where each color will be placed. These lines help me visualize the overall structure and plan the flow of the painting.
In Image 4, I begin laying down the first undertone, establishing the foundation for the colors that will come later. I’ll add another layer of undertones after this to deepen the values and create a richer base before applying the final colors.
The Munsell Color Chart
Suritah Wignall talks about colors:
Transcript
Okay, so this is the fun part of painting, choosing my colors. So the one thing that I’ve learned in classical painting school was the Munsell Color Theory system, which is something that I had never known about. And when I had gone back to study classical painting, it really, truly felt like I was starting all over again. Like I was learning how to paint and draw all over again. And my teacher, he is phenomenal. He’s a master painter.
So, you know, I love when I go out to classes, there’s like, I’m learning something all the time. But the Munsell Color Theory system is just a method of specifying colors based on three properties. The hue, the value, which is, so the hue is the basic color, the value is the lightness from light to darkness, and the chroma is the color intensity. And so for me, what we’ve learned in school, we learned how to create 12 different color theory charts based on the color theory system.
And the colors I chose were cadamine red, the color chart to cadamine orange, cadamine yellow, and cobalt blue. So with the cadamine reds, the red deeps, and alizarin crimson color chart, I’ll be using this color theory system to create my gladiolus flowers. For the cadamine orange and the burnt umber, that’s going to be my hero’s skin tone and her undertones. For the cadamine yellow and raw umber, I’m going to use that to paint the imphepho. That’s the bundle that she’s holding in her hands, as well as highlighting my flowers.
And for the cobalt blue, I’ll be using those blue hues to paint her African shawl. So out of the 12 color charts, these are the colors that I have chosen for my finished piece.
In classical painting school, I was introduced to the Munsell Color System, a framework that has shaped the way I choose my palette. For this work, I’m using Cadmium Red to capture the vibrancy of the Gladiolus and Cadmium Orange to bring warmth to my hero’s skin tone.
The yellows and oranges will serve as the undertones of the skin, as well as to highlight the Gladiolus and Imphepho.
The Cobalt Blue hues will be used to render the African shawl
Plants and Flowers in African Mythology
Suritah Wignall talks about plants and flowers:
Transcript
I would have to say that this part of the residency was the most exciting part for me because of my love for mythology. So in thinking about my inner hero and what I wanted her to look like, I knew that I was going to add plants and flowers to my painting. If you look in my studio, I do have a couple of paintings that are there of my grandma’s. And in that, you will see collages of flowers on their garments.
So I decided to take it one step further and look into the mythology behind some of these plants and flowers that I love so much. And so in African mythology, flowers and plants hold a very deep, symbolic and spiritual significance to many different communities within the continent. And so I decided to look up… As I was doing my research in my studio, there’s many different plants and flowers that I’ve come across that were so inspiring.
But my favorite plant is, or my favorite flower is called the gladiola, and they’re called glads. And it’s interesting in African mythology, the glads were used to ward off evil spirits. And it’s interesting that also that warriors would smash down the glads into a powder and rubbed them onto their armor before they would go into war.
So I was like, holy smokes. When I researched that, when I saw that and read that, I was like, this is phenomenal. And in Greek mythology, the glads are also known as sword lilies. And warriors within Greek mythology would also use them before going to war as well. So I was like, how perfect is that?
I decided to take the actual flower design itself and place it on to my warrior’s, my hero’s, African Shaw, as if to say, if you are evil or if you’re something that’s not good, you can’t penetrate me. I’m protected. So I love that.
And then I wanted to know what was equivalent to sage. And that’s when I discovered impepho. Impepho is used throughout the continent, but it’s mostly used as well in South Africa with sangomas. And sangomas are African priests in South Africa, and they would use it for divination and calling on the ancestors and whatnot. And so I found that completely fascinating that this is something that healers would use and priests would use in order to speak to the ancestors. So I wanted my hero to have a bundle of imphepho in her hand as to show that she has access There’s this constant access to the divine ancestors that she can call on them.
And it’s also used to clear negative energy. I also discovered that there are seven different kinds of imphepho. Don’t fully quote me on that and that each has their own use. And it’s really important that if you do decide to purchase this amazing bundle that you know what you’re purchasing. And I found that to be really cool as well.
This entire process has been incredible. It’s incredible. And it doesn’t end here for me. I’m incredibly grateful to Sarah and everybody for inviting me into this residency. I’m really excited to continue on with this project, and I can’t wait to show you what the finished piece looks like. I’m going to continue working on it, and once it’s completed, I will pass it over to Sarah so that she can post it. Thank you so much for staying to the end with me. You’re invited to check out my studio so you can see the entire process of me creating this this wonderful image and going through this project. So, yeah, thank you so much. Thank you.
Flowers and plants hold deep symbolic and spiritual significance in many African mythologies
Connecting with my Hero also means connecting with my ancestors and lineage. Here are some of the plants that I love and their meaning behind them and how they will be added the painting
Where am I without them? Medicine that heals
One of the best parts of this residency was taking the time to do research. I love surrounding my home with flowers and plants, and one of my favourite plants is the gladiolus, which I will explain in the next section. In almost all my paintings—whether they are fully painted or include collage—flowers and plants are always a special addition. They give my work an extra layer of beauty and meaning. As I was researching which plants to include in my paintings, I naturally thought of gladiolus. But I also began thinking about how sage is important in many Indigenous communities, and I wondered what the African cultural equivalent might be. If plants and flowers are seen as living bridges between the physical and spiritual worlds, then Imphepho serves as a direct link to our ancestors. When I discovered Imphepho, I was truly excited. In my painting, my hero is holding the Imphepho as a way of showing that she does not walk alone—her guardians are right beside her.
Imphepho – used in both traditional African medicine and spiritual rituals, primarily as a sacred incense for communicating with ancestors, cleansing negative energy, and inducing spiritual or dream-like states.
Gladiolus
I couldn’t tell you exactly why gladiolus are my favourite flowers—maybe it’s because of how majestic they are, or how each bloom has its own unique beauty. I love the way they open slowly, offering a quiet lesson in patience. All I know is that I look forward to every season when they return, and as soon as the three weeks are up and the last petal has fallen, I’m back with a fresh batch of flowers.
You can only imagine my delight when I discovered that, in African traditions and folklore, the gladiolus—native to the region—is associated with medicinal properties, protection from evil spirits, and blessings of fertility. In my image above, the petals of the gladiolus are imprinted on her African shawl. It is the perfect symbol: as this hero continues her journey, she is protected by the petals, which ward off any ill intent directed toward her.
Her shawl – Beyond their practical use for warmth, these shawls often carry spiritual meaning and are believed to offer protection from physical harm and negative energies.
