Described by many as a pioneer South African artist, Gerhard Bhengu possessed a remarkable artistic skill which attracted wide attention from a largely white patronage who commissioned works which portrayed a range of topics from religious imagery to portrayals of rural life and culture. His watercolour and sepia ink works demonstrate a high level of technical skill and is most evident in his character studies of old men and young children who are usually portrayed in tribal dress. He also produced a number of landscapes of the KwaZulu Natal countryside which depicts aspects of traditional rural of Zulu lifestyle.

This painting is not similar to many of the other landscape paintings in the Standard Bank Corporate Collection where the manner in which the landscape is represented, it conforms to prevailing fashionable trends, which are at certain times faithful renditions or views representing idealistic environments executed according to the pretentions of the artist or patron. Bushfire has an unsettling atmosphere and seems somewhat ‘out of place’ among the other landscapes which all depict seemingly peaceful and idyllic rural or semi rural environments. The image depicts a dramatic rendering where small figures are raging against an overwhelming sea of flames represented by wildly agitated brushwork in vivid oranges, reds and yellows. The action takes place in a scenic landscape where the colors of the brightly colored towering flames contrast vividly against the backdrop of the scenic mountains and dramatic sky.

The people represented in this landscape are dwarfed by their surroundings and seem unable to control the natural splendor which they inhabit. Seen against the background of the political era during which it was produced, the runaway veldfire could be seen as a symbol or metaphor for the manner in which the original inhabitants of the KwaZulu Natal area had lost control over this resource, embodying their economic and political disenfranchisement.

Stylistically this particular painting is also much more expressive with more aggressive mark making rather than the detailed, polished look of his other works, it may represent other than the obvious subject matter, an alternate undercurrent or veiled meaning .