Johannesburg Art Gallery
The idea to open an art gallery in johannesburg was born In 1904
when Lady Phillips, wife of the first chairman of the Rand Mines
Company, sold her 21-carat ring to purchase three paintings by Wilson
Steer. She used her wealthy connections to purchase more artwork
over next 5 years. Sir Edwin Lutyens was commisioned to design the
art gallery and the Johannesburg Art Gallery came to being.
The Johannesburg art gallery has arguably the best international
collection in South Africa, including works by El Greco, Picasso,
Rodin, Dalí, and Lichtenstein. The gallery is situated in
Joubert Park and secure parking is available.
The gallery also has a good selection of South Africa's best black
artists, including sculptures by Venda artist Jackson Hlungwani
and paintings by Helen Sebidi, Alfred Toba, and Gerard Sekoto. The
rather boring Flemish and Dutch collections are more than made up
for by the Brenthurst Collection of African Art, comprising curios
plundered by European explorers in the 19th century, and later collections
of traditional southern African artworks.
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