Strauss & co - 6 March 2017, Cape Town

277 544 Ephraim NGATANE SOUTH AFRICAN 1938–1971 Expectant Mothers signed and dated ‘64 oil on board 60,5 by 91,5 cm R  –   his dominant subject is segregated black life under apartheid, Ngatane’s output is an expression of a rounded personality. His work records many instances of pleasure: boxing and jazz performances, notably, but also weddings and a 1967 snowstorm in Soweto.“He was an excellent boxer and played both the penny-whistle and alto-saxophone well,”records art historian EJ de Jager.“He loved company and his untidy studio was often filled with friends making music and discussing the events of the day. Ngatane seriously contemplated life and its meaning. Creative self-fulfilment, rather than public recognition, was important to him.”5 1. Steven Sack. (1988) TheNeglectedTradition:TowardsaNewHistoryofSouth AfricanArt (1930-1988) . Johannesburg: Johannesburg Art Gallery, page 16. 2. David Koloane. (1989) ‘The Polly Street Art Scene’, in African Art in Southern Africa: From Tradition to Township , Nettleton, Anitra and Hammond-Tooke, David (eds). Cape Town: Ad. Donker, page 225. 3. Matsemela Manaka. (1987). Echoes of African Art: A Century of Art in South Africa . Braamfontein: Skotaville Publishers, page 15. 4. Olu Oguibe. (2004) The Culture Game . Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, page 181. 5. EJ De Jager. (1992) Images of Man: Contemporary South African Black Art and Artists . Alice: University of Fort Hare, page 48. ©TheEstate ofEphraimNgatane |DALRO