Nelson Mandela was taught to draw when in his eighties. When it was suggested that he may wish to take up drawing as a hobby and to leave a pictorial legacy he stated that “If I have any artistic talent at all it is in the far recesses of a very old mind.” However, he agreed that if he was to have an art teacher he would try and see what the results would be.
Varenka Parshke was the chosen tutor, a young South African artist who described Mr Mandela as a very willing pupil, full of enthusiasm and ideas. She helped guide the octogenarian in colour, composition and perspective and the results were effective and evocative – they showed an ability and talent no one know Nelson Mandela possessed – that of an artist.
Nelson Mandela wrote many hand written motivations about his work – one of which accompanies his first drawings of the Struggle Series. In this work he describes his drawings of hands as not so much about his life but about his own country. He says he chose to draw hands because “they are powerful instruments, hands can hurt or heal, punish or uplift. They can also be bound but a quest for righteousness can never be repressed. In time, we broke lose the shackles of injustice, we joined hands across social divides and national boundaries, between continents and over oceans and now we look to the future, knowing that even if age makes us wiser guides, [it is] the youth that reminds us of love, of trust and of the value of life.”
Some years after the launch of the Mandela prints and Mandela lithographs by Belgravia Gallery there were accusations of some fake Mandela art – these accusations have subsequently proved to be incorrect and through thorough investigation and there is no evidence of any Mandela Fake Art at all.
In 2015, Nelson Mandela’s eldest child, Dr Makawizi Mandela, came to London to speak about her father, his legacy and his art. She spoke of her father’s art:
“I think when the idea of painting was introduced to him, he found another form in which to tell the story of South Africa, the story of the struggle and how…they overcame adversity and brought freedom to South Africa. He believed very much in the future because he was such a positive man.”
Speaking about ‘’The Window’, one of the Nelson Mandela lithographs:
“That picture depicts the window in his prison cell…I think it is representing the future and I think the fact that even though he was in prison the only way he could survive himself was to free himself spiritually. Although physically he was incarcerated, spiritually he was a free man…The paintings are a reflection of his home, of being out of prison physically, but emotionally he was already out of prison”
Varenka Parshke was the chosen tutor, a young South African artist who described Mr Mandela as a very willing pupil, full of enthusiasm and ideas. She helped guide the octogenarian in colour, composition and perspective and the results were effective and evocative – they showed an ability and talent no one know Nelson Mandela possessed – that of an artist.
Nelson Mandela wrote many hand written motivations about his work – one of which accompanies his first drawings of the Struggle Series. In this work he describes his drawings of hands as not so much about his life but about his own country. He says he chose to draw hands because “they are powerful instruments, hands can hurt or heal, punish or uplift. They can also be bound but a quest for righteousness can never be repressed. In time, we broke lose the shackles of injustice, we joined hands across social divides and national boundaries, between continents and over oceans and now we look to the future, knowing that even if age makes us wiser guides, [it is] the youth that reminds us of love, of trust and of the value of life.”
Some years after the launch of the Mandela prints and Mandela lithographs by Belgravia Gallery there were accusations of some fake Mandela art – these accusations have subsequently proved to be incorrect and through thorough investigation and there is no evidence of any Mandela Fake Art at all.
In 2015, Nelson Mandela’s eldest child, Dr Makawizi Mandela, came to London to speak about her father, his legacy and his art. She spoke of her father’s art:
“I think when the idea of painting was introduced to him, he found another form in which to tell the story of South Africa, the story of the struggle and how…they overcame adversity and brought freedom to South Africa. He believed very much in the future because he was such a positive man.”
Speaking about ‘’The Window’, one of the Nelson Mandela lithographs:
“That picture depicts the window in his prison cell…I think it is representing the future and I think the fact that even though he was in prison the only way he could survive himself was to free himself spiritually. Although physically he was incarcerated, spiritually he was a free man…The paintings are a reflection of his home, of being out of prison physically, but emotionally he was already out of prison”