New Group

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The New Group was a group of young South African artists who, starting in 1937, began to question and oppose the conservatism of the South African Society of Artists. [1] Its founding chairperson was Gregoire Boonzaier; other founding members were Lippy Lipshitz, Frieda Lock, Cecil Higgs and Terence McCaw.

Gregoire Boonzaier South African painter

Gregoire Johannes Boonzaier was a South African artist well known for his landscapes, portraits and still life paintings. He was a famous exponent of Cape Impressionism, a founder of the New Group, and a contributor, through his art works, to the struggle against apartheid.

Lippy Lipshitz Sculptor and painter

Israel-Isaac Lipshitz, known as Lippy Lipshitz was a South African sculptor, painter and printmaker. He is considered to be one of the most important South African sculptors, along with Moses Kottler and Anton van Wouw.

Cecil Higgs was a South African artist. She was the third child and second girl of the five children of Clement Higgs and his wife Florence. In 1912, Higgs's father died at the age of 50. In 1916, Higgs became a boarder at the Wesleyan Girls' High School in Grahamstown. Her oldest brother, Clement jr., was killed in 1916 in World War I. Higgs briefly enrolled in the Grahamstown School of Art in 1918, however in 1920 she sailed to England and stayed abroad for 13 years. She trained in London at the Byam Shaw School of Art, at Goldsmiths' College and, from 1926, at the Royal Academy of Arts. Higgs was called back to South Africa, however, due to the illness of her mother, who died in 1934. Higgs held her first solo exhibition in the Domestic Science hall of Stellenbosch University in 1935, meeting the painter Wolf Kibel and the sculptor Lippy Lipshitz. In 1938, she held a joint exhibition with Rene Graetz, Maggie Laubser and Lippy Lipshitz. In 1938 she returned to Paris, however she left due to World War II. Higgs joined the New Group which was revolting against tradition forms of art. In 1939, Higgs began a lifelong friendship with English painter John Dronsfield. In 1953, she held her only solo exhibition in the Orange Free State. Higgs eventually settled in Sea Point, however the influence of the sea in her paintings led to her label as a marine painter. In 1964, she built a house in Onrust. Higgs was eventually diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease and in 1984 she moved to Protea Park Nursing Home where she died on 16 June 1986.

New Group were contemporary South African artists who worked and exhibited together, included Judith Gluckman and Alexis Preller as well as Lippy Lipschitz, Gregoire Boonzaier (co-founder and president for 10 years), Louis Maurice, Solly Disner and Walter Battiss.

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References

  1. ↑ South African History Online
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