Heike Taschner Jeske’s recently launched signature exhibition, ROSE’d at the Franschhoek-based La Motte Estate, is an impressive display of everything floral, but also a deeply personal homecoming for her as artist. Heike’s father, Ludwig Taschner, is the well-known founder of Ludwig’s Roses and evidently, she grew up among the roses and from a young age, it formed part of her being. “It was what I was exposed to and what I loved,” she says. Naturally, ROSE’d was also the perfect name for an exhibition that would encapsulate all of those nostalgic moments so beautifully.

The larger than life rose petals hanging from the ceiling at La Motte’s Ateljee Gallery were being installed when I visited, and even as they were being installed, it already offered an immersive experience of note. Heike says that she installed her very first large rose on the rose farm 20 years ago. “When I saw La Motte’s space, I just thought it would be incredible. It was an open canvas to execute a huge rose – I knew it had to be the largest that I’d ever made.” Apart from a centre concept and pre-made petals, the rest happened on site. “If I had to take that rose down now and install it somewhere else, it won’t be exactly the same. It always is space dependant and intuitive,” she explains.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE SUITCASE & CHARDONNAY PODCAST

Growing Up Amongst the Roses

Looking back, Heike says growing up on a rose farm was very special. Together with her siblings, she spent time with roses daily from a very young age. When she was 12, she started breeding roses with her father. “The first real architecture that I experienced, was the rose. For me, the anatomy of a rose is very fascinating and it comes very naturally. Even the scent of the rose; the form of the rose; the colours of the rose – although I don’t use an exceptional amount of colour in my artworks, it all plays a role.”

Like on the rose farm, fresh seasons like spring and summer are abundant months for her. “We harvest and things are growing naturally. It’s warmth and sunlight.” That’s why she wanted to represent expansiveness. “Something that symbolises our growth and that just kind of explodes,” she says. “So, the soft pink – for me – represents a lot of the Cape and what’s happening in the Cape in spring and summer.” The ROSE’d installation therefore resembles a lot of the Cape’s flora and the pink Proteas and fynbos it’s known for. “Spring and summer are just amazing months to be in South Africa,” Heike says. “Especially in the Cape.”

FIND MORE LIFESTYLE ARTICLES HERE

Extending Into the Theme of ‘Flourished’

Following the initial commission of the ROSE’d exhibition, La Motte also invited artists to submit works that could tie in with the exhibition under the theme, Flourished. This extension of the exhibition leans into more cyclical plants, and even the narrative of humans flourishing. Ultimately, the additional artworks represent a bigger theme around the ROSE’d exhibition and allowed lots of other artists to participate. The top 10 artists’ works are showcased on a dedicated wall in the exhibition space at La Motte, while others are also available to view and purchase.  

The Many Ways In Which Travel Shapes Art

For Heike, travelling is always exciting and challenging at the same time. “It helps you embrace new people, new places, new tastes, new experiences, and it takes you out of your comfort zone. You have to deal with new things and conceptualise it into a new work, because you are exceeding your boundaries and you need to think out of the box. So, for me, any travel is always welcome. If I can incorporate that into my work, I definitely do,” she says.

FIND MORE TRAVEL STORIES HERE

In fact, Heike would love to do an exhibition in the East – perhaps Japan or even China. “Actually, the rose originates from China,” she says. “It was brought over to South Africa by the settlers. So, I think it would be nice to go back to the origin and incorporate a little bit of the Eastern stillness and their way of living.”

In addition to these aspirations, Heike will be co-hosting a retreat close to Tuscany, Italy next year. She was approached by Fab Retreats to offer a week-long workshop with students, doing lots of art in a beautiful villa, after which they’ll move to Venice for another three days, coinciding with the Venice Biennale.

Further to this, she also has a big, commissioned project – a suspended coral sculpture – that will be going to Dubai soon and she’s been invited to exhibit in Sangerhausen, Germany again in 2026.

Blending Fragrances and Art In the ROSE’d Exhibition

Naturally, fragrances have always played a huge role in Heike’s life. “Any subtle, pure, natural scents – especially the rose. Heike says the rose’s scent actually has a calming effect on one’s nervous system and that there is a big connection, in a sensory way, to her ROSE’d exhibition, because it guides your imagination. “When you close your eyes and smell it, it’s actually something that you want to see.”

Could Heike’s works perhaps be seen on the runway soon?

Heike says she would love to make a rose-inspired gown. “I would do it extravagantly. I’d definitely bring out the petal shapes – probably like over the head and draped around the body… still keeping it very simplistic. But, far more interesting would be to have a massive rose down one of the fashion runways…” she says. “I’d definitely love to pair up with a designer that says let’s do something magnificent!”

READ SUITCASE & CHARDONNAY’S FASHION STORIES HERE

ROSE’d at La Motte

Staying at La Motte definitely shaped every petal that Heike hung in the ROSE’d exhibition. The people, the place, the gardens – it all had an influence. “It’s a very holistic place to visit.” It’s only natural that the exhibition has extended to various experiences at La Motte too. From the La Motte Bakery experimenting with pastries made with rose water to Cap Classique with rose water pearls. According to Heike, La Motte’s Rosé Vin de Joie is the perfect pairing for her exhibition, “because it’s light and easy.”

For those who enjoy art, Heike has a workshop coming up in February where you can learn about the sculptural technique she uses to make her roses. “We walk in the La Motte gardens, pick our favourite flowers, come back and do a bit of blind sketching on them. Then, we pull it apart and we remake it in clay, after which we put it back together – either in the way that you see the flower or in an abstract form.” Finally, you make a pendant out of it, or something you can wear and take home with you. You can book your spot here.

Make Time To Get ROSE’d

ROSE’d has been running from October this year and is still open until the 22^nd of February 2026 and you’re sure to stand in awe as you enter the space. Heike says: “I would love for people to be present; to breathe in that space and to appreciate every little thing that has been on their path this past year, and in front of them, in that space.” She would like people to really look at the details of each artwork and to see what was captured. And, to appreciate who they are and that they’re there, that specific day, able to enjoy what is right in front of them.

• Slow Living Reset: How to Restart, Reset and Refocus
• Dekkersvlei: Taste The World’s First White Pinotage On A Heritage Wine Farm, Reimagined
• The World’s Best New Luxury Hotels of 2025
• Earth’s Essence: SA’s First Naturally Preserved Wine, Beer and Cider
• Inside Morea House, Marriott Bonvoy’s Autograph Collection