Born in Nieu Bethesda in 1897, Martins spent the 1920s travelling the country with her husband, teaching and acting.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

Nieu Bethesda does not have a petrol station, bank or credit card facilities.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

Although the reclusive artist was originally regarded with suspicion by her conservative neighbours, her legacy has placed Nieu Bethesda on the map.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

Her marriage failed and by 1928 she was back in Nieu Bethesda caring for her elderly parents, stuck in what was then a staunchly Calvinist farming village.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

With its tree-lined dirt roads, whitewashed cottages and vintage signposts giving distances in miles (South Africa converted to metric in the 1970s), Nieu Bethesda is an off-the-grid destination.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

Located 55km north of Graaff-Reinet along a gravel road through the Sneeuberg (Snow Mountains), the remote village of Nieu Bethesda has a spring-fed network of irrigation channels, giving it the appearance of a green oasis.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo

In Nieu Besthesda, stay in Bethesda Tower, a castellated, fairytale tower with a ground-floor cafe, or the Water Tower, a simpler option in a converted water tower.

BBC: South Africa��s arty eastern Karoo