Anton van Wouw (27 December 1862 30 July 1945) was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

-born

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

n sculptor regarded as the father of South African

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

.Burger, E. ''Die Huiselike Omstandighede van Anton van Wouw''. University of Pretoria, 1941, p. 21

Biography

Van Wouw decided to move to the developing city of

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

at the age of 28 and waited for ten years to receive his first commission. This was from financier

Sammy Marks Sammy is a nickname, frequently for people named Samuel, and also an English spelling of the Arabic name Sami. People Music * Sammy Adams (born 1987), American rapper and songwriter *Sammy Cahn (1913-1993), American songwriter *Sammy Davis Jr. ...

to create a monumental statue of

Paul Kruger Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (; 10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904) was a South African politician. He was one of the dominant political and military figures in 19th-century South Africa, and President of the South African Republic (or ...

, which stands on Church Square. During his time spent in the wilderness he developed a great admiration for the

Boer Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape Colony, Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controll ...

nation. This also influenced his artistic development a great deal. He identified with the struggles and hopes of these people and this commitment was reflected in his work. A great deal of his work, although representational, captures the rugged and emotional essence of his subjects. One of his most notable pieces of work is the figure of a woman used in the Women’s Monument near

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...

. He collaborated on this with the architect Frans Soff. He was also responsible for the less successful figure of a woman incorporated into the Voortrekker Monument near Pretoria, a powerful bust of General Christiaan de Wet and the statue of

Louis Botha Louis Botha (; 27 September 1862 – 27 August 1919) was a South African politician who was the first prime minister of the Union of South Africa – the forerunner of the modern South African state. A Boer war hero during the Second Boer War, ...

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

. He also portrayed indigenous peoples and among these smaller sculptures some of his finest work can be found. They are much less formal than his larger work and are appealing in their vivid and lifelike facial expressions.

Works

Woman and Children, completed in 1938. This bronze statue honouring the role the Voortrekker women played in the

Great Trek The Great Trek ( af, Die Groot Trek; nl, De Grote Trek) was a Northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyon ...

was van Wouw's last commission. The sculpture is located at the base of the

Voortrekker Monument The Voortrekker Monument is located just south of Pretoria in South Africa. The granite structure is located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854. It was designed by the a ...

, stands 4.1 meter tall and weights 2.5 ton. The casting was done by Renzo Vignali in

. Models for the statue were Cato Roorda or Isabel Snyman as the woman, Betty Wolk as the girl and Joseph Goldstein as the boy

Remembered

* Laerskool Anton van Wouw is a primary school named after van Wouw in the

suburb of Brooklyn. *

Van Wouw Museum The Van Wouw House, was the last residence of the South African artist Anton Van Wouw. Anton van Wouw (1862–1945) Anton van Wouw was born in Driebergen, near Utrecht in the Netherlands on 26 December 1862. He had a thorough training in academ ...

located in his final residence.

Gallery

Image:Chuch Square, PTA.jpg, Statue of Paul Kruger, 1899, on Church Square,

File:Hendrik_Hofmeyr.JPG, Statue of Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, 1916, Church Square, Cape Town Image:Mt steyn statue.jpg, Statue of

Martinus Theunis Steyn Martinus (or Marthinus) Theunis Steyn (; 2 October 1857 – 28 November 1916) was a South African lawyer, politician, and politician, statesman. He was the sixth and last president of the independent republic the Orange Free State from 1896 to ...

, 1928, for the University of the Free State, moved to the Museum of the Boer Republics in 2020 Image:Monument of Sir Henry Timson Lukin.JPG, Major General Sir Henry Timson Lukin, 1930,

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

Image:South Africa-Voortrekker Monument-Woman and Children01.jpg, Woman and Children, 1939,

References

External links