31st Oct, 2016 20:00
Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art
57
Ernst De Jong (South Africa 1934-2016)
Highveld thunderstorm
oil on canvas
Artwork date: 1978
Signature details: signed and dated
Sold for R79,576
Estimated at R30,000 - R50,000
oil on canvas
Artwork date: 1978
Signature details: signed and dated
(1)
120.5 x 151 cm
Notes:
Ernst de Jong died earlier this year after a short illness in his Pretoria home. He was 81.
In 1957 he established the Ernst de Jong Studios in Pretoria – long regarded as the foremost graphic design studio in the country – and taught design and painting at various universities in South Africa, Norway and New York. He held 50 solo painting exhibitions, produced 33 murals, and designed several series of South African postage stamps. In the early 1990s De Jong was appointed by the South African Reserve Bank to design the new “Big Five” bank note series.
In 1972 De Jong inaugurated a new course in Information Design at the University of Pretoria where he was teaching, and in 1978, the year he painted Highveld Thunderstorm, he became head of the Department of Information Design. At that time, De Jong had “closed the door upon his phase of abstract composition … and concentrated on the portrayal of the physical reality of objects” (Berman 1983:111). However, “abstract modern thinking – art without stories and illustrations”, as De Jong (2013:13) referred to his “fascinating configurations” (2013:12), remained part of his approach to painting. In Highveld Thunderstorm the silver flash of lightning cracking through a dark sky, essentially a decorative design element, is earthed in an assortment of symbolic images of the natural Highveld environment (a tornado, a downpour, a rainbow, a couple of trees) in a formalised heraldic composition. This painting provides support for De Jong’s fervent belief that the most important aspect of all great art is that it is well designed.
Johan Myburg
Sources:
Berman, E. (1983). Art & Artists of South Africa. Cape Town & Rotterdam: Balkema.
De Jong, E. (2013). Ernst de Jong. First published in 2013 by Modern art projects (Map) – South Africa, on the occasion of the exhibition Ernst de Jong, 60s Revisited at Map - South Africa – Eastwood, Pretoria, Tshwane, Gauteng, [online]. Available at: http://www.map-southafrica.org [Accessed 6 September 2016].
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Auction: Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art, 31st Oct, 2016
The line-up for our inaugural sale included an extraordinary selection of art. Works ranged from JH Pierneef’s breathtaking Karoo near Hofmeyer, painted in 1930, to Dan Halter’s 2006, ultraviolet light, Pefection.
Sculptures varied from Edoardo Villa’s acknowledgment of French artist, Aristide Maillol to Wim Botha’s heads that draw on classical and contemporary sources and Ed Young’s cheeky nude self-portrait. Also included were impressive photographs by award-winners, David Goldblatt and Pieter Hugo.
The auction set an impressive standard, with an outstanding sell-through rate of over 75% across 121 lots. The top lot of the sale was Alexis Preller’s exceptional Profile Figures (Mirrored Image), selling for over R7-million. Record sales were achieved for Villa, Goldblatt, and Hugo, amongst others.
Viewing
Friday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Saturday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Sunday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 4 pm
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