Maggie (Maria Magdalena) Laubser – South African Artist, Paintings 1886 - 1973
Maggie Laubser was born in the Malmesbury district, Cape Town 1886 - 1973
Art Education
- 1903 : briefly under Edward Roworth.
- 1915 – 1918 : Slade School, London, under Henry Tonks and Ambrose McEvoy.
- 1922 – 1924 : Maggie Laubser worked among German Expressionists in Berlin.
Short Artist Biography
- Born on the farm “Bloublommetjieskloof”.
- 1897 – 1901 : boarding-school at Bloemhof Seminary, Stellenbosch, then returned to help mother on the farm; on a visit to relatives in Cape Town was introduced to a circle of artists and musicians, resulting in the desire to study singing and, later, painting.
- 1907 : Maggie Laubser elected a member of South African Society of Artists.
- c1912 : visited Pretoria : subsequently lived in the Transvaal; governess on a farm for a short while, later taught at Ermelo.
- 1913 : Maggie Laubser left for Europe; lived briefly in the artists’ colony at Laren, Holland until outbreak of World War 1; thence to London.
- 1951 : brief visit to South Africa; returned to England, studied at the Slade; painting-trips to Scotland and the Midlands.
- 1918 – 1919 : Maggie Laubser lived in Antwerp; visit to Germany.
- 1919 – 1920 : Maggie Laubser lived and worked at Torri bell Benaco and San Vigilio on the Garda Lake, North Italy.
- 1920 : returned to South Africa; met Irma Stern on the voyage home.
- 1921 : the facts are uncertain, but probably a short stay in Italy broken by a visit to South Africa.
- 1922 – 1924 : Maggie Laubser lived in Berlin; no formal studies, but contact with the German Expressionists; encouraged by Karl Schmidt-Rotluff; produced a number of wood- and lino-cuts – unlocated; (four monotypes in possession of Dr H Silberberg, Tulbagh, Cape Town).
- 1924 : returned permanently to South Africa; lived in seclusion on family farm at Oortmanspost, near Klipheuwel, Cape Town; made working trips to Transvaal, Orange Free State and Natal – many drawing sand paintings of African and Indian women; exhibited regularly; began to develop her distinctive pastoral style.
- 1936 : Maggie Laubser served on the selection panel of the Empire Exhibition (the convenor was Professor Martin du Toit, long one of her most sincere supporters); a trip to Gansbaai with May Hillhouse resulted in her famous paintings of the fishing village; member of the New Group.
- 1944 : subject of a monograph, Maggie Laubser, by Johannes Meintjes; moved to Strand.
- 1946 : awarded Medal of Honour for Painting by Suid Afrikaanse Akademie - the first woman to receive it.
- 1953 : built her cottage “Altyd lig” at Strand, where she lived until her death.
- 1959 : Maggie Laubser elected Hon Member of Suid Afrikaanse Akademie.
- 1968 : awarded Medal of Honour of SAAA (Cape Region). Had signed her work in three ways : Maggie Laubser (early), ML (particularly during 1920s) and M Laubser. Canvases seldom dated : where dates appear they have often been added later, with possible errors of memory.
- 1974 : subject of a monograph by Johan van Rooyen.
Art Exhibitions
- 1924 – 1970 : one-man exhibitions in all centers of South Africa.
- 1936 : Empire Exhibition, Johannesburg.
- 1948 : Overseas Exhibition of South African Art, Tate Gallery, et al.
- 1952 : Venice Bien; Van Riebeeck Tercent Exhibition, Cape Town.
- 1953 : Rhodes Cent Exhibition, Bulawayo.
- 1956 : First Quad of South African Art.
- 1958 – 1959 : South African Art Touring Netherlands, Belgium, Germany.
- 1960 : Second Quad of South African Art.
- 1963 : Retrospective Exhibition, Egon Guenther Gallery, Johannesburg.
- 1964 : Third Quad of South African Art.
- 1966 : Republic Festival Exhibition, Pretoria.
- 1069 : Prestige Retrospective Exhibition, South Africa National Gallery, Cape Town : Pretoria Art Museum : Johannesburg Art Gallery.
Public Art collections
South African National Gallery, Cape Town; Johannesburg Art Gallery; Pretoria Art Museum; Durban Art Gallery; AC White Gallery, Bloemfontein; Hester Rupert Art Museum, Grahams town : William Humphreys Gallery, Kimberley; Rembrandt Art Foundation; University of Wits Galleries : UNISA : Sandton Munic Collect.
Source
Berman, E. 1994. Art & Artists of South Africa . Southern Book Publishers.
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