In remembrance of South African artist identities that were erased during the social and political unrest that plagued the country, we take a look at one of the earliest self-taught black artists, Gerard Bhengu, who shaped South Africa’s art world as we know it.
The Genesis
Born on 6 September 1910 in Southern Natal, South Africa, Gerard Bhengu was a fine artist who had a natural ability in producing photo – real portraits and landscapes.
He was the eldest of four raised in the Roman Catholic faith in the Creighton region of Natal. As a child, would often find himself in trouble with Mangwababane, his tidy-minded mother, for the drawings upon the walls of her hut. Pens or pencils were scarce in his homestead as neither his mother nor her husband Xhalakadayimane had learned to use them. Instead Bhengu would find use of splintered charcoal from the fire his mother would cook upon, which served as the perfect medium for his drawings.
A Man With A Prodigious Natural Ability
At a tender age, his teacher Albert Duma was the first to spot his talent, gifting him a set of crayons. Often reprimanded by his conservative mother for scribbling in his school books, Albert Duma would encourage him to draw sketches delighting in his natural talent. He was further encouraged by Mr. Jowett, the schools inspector, who presented him with a watercolour set.
Gerard’s first brush with commissioned artwork happened when he was still an adolescent. After falling ill and being treated by his doctor Dr Köhler, Bhengu presented the doctor with one of his classroom drawings. The doctor found much delight in this picture that he asked him to assist in creating some coloured charts for use in his lectures. The result was so satisfactory that the doctor sent to Bavaria for supplies of the best paints, brushes and paper for Gerard.
“From 1926 – 31 Bhengu produced 150 drawings for Dr Max Kohler as documentation of rural tribal life in Centecow.”
Bhengu worked largely in watercolour and sepia in his works, portraying the landscape and people of South Africa in fine detail. His earliest paintings and drawings date from 1926. His earlier work was seldom in-scripted with a date, however always signed with his name & surname. His penmanship was illegible at points and is discernible by the use of the spelling ‘Bengu’ in the signature.
“Bhengu would later find himself plagued with an internal conflict”
From 1936, he took part in various group exhibitions, including the 1979 Contemporary African Art in SA touring exhibition and the Historical Perspective of Black Art in SA Exhibition at the Alliance Française, Pretoria in 1986.
Bhengu’s remarkable artworks attracted much attention from a largely white patronage. He would later find himself plagued by an internal conflict of producing works for the white minority, identifying his fear of corrupting his “natural gift” for the oppressor.
Gerard Bhengu would later die at the age of 80 at Umlazi, Durban, having made a significant contribution to South Africa’s art world as one of the earliest self-taught black artists. In 2013 The Republic of South Africa opened the historic Gerard Bhengu Museum in honour of the artist in celebration of his legacy. The museum is located in Centocow Mission, Creighton and opens from from Monday – Sunday at 8AM – 4PM.
