The auction sale not to be missed: The Everard Group Phenomenon
Strauss & Co showcases the artistic production of four generations of women, spanning almost a century.
Art lovers and of course art collectors have a good reason to look forward to this particular auction sale
By CityLife Arts Writer
“Strauss & Co is pleased to present “The Everard Group” a sale that celebrates the creative legacy of four generations of women whose artistic production spans almost a century.
The unique Timed Online Auction, closing on Monday 11th November at 7 pm, celebrates the Everard Legacy through a remarkable collection of paintings by nearly all members, highlighting the group’s significant contribution to South African art,” the auction house affirms.
Featuring Edith King, her sister Bertha Everard and her two daughters Ruth and Rosamund, Ruth’s daughter Leonora, and her daughters Alana and Nichola, the Everard Group are renowned for their distinctive modernist style of painting with compositions characterised by expressive brushwork, bold colours, and a deep sense of place.
The family’s artistic journey began with Edith and Bertha, who were born in Natal in the 1870s. Both pursued art studies in Europe before returning to South Africa, where their work developed into an idiosyncratic modernist sensibility. Influenced by formal training both locally and abroad (Vienna, London and Paris, among others) coupled with independent study and experimentation, the Group developed a unique approach to depicting the natural world, blending realism with semi-abstraction. Their love for rural life, poetry, music and visual art showcases a holistic and deeply interconnected worldview.
Marked by a rich sensuality and technical skill, each work is executed in brilliant, unexpected colours often depicting undulating hills, vibrant skies, and intimate rural scenes— brought to life with intricate detail. Small animals quietly populating the terrain, horses in motion and delicate daisies evoke wonders of the countryside, giving a tactile connection between the landscape and its inhabitants.
A national travelling exhibition of the Everard Group opened at the Grahamstown Festival in 2000, honouring their significant impact on local and global art history. Today, Strauss & Co continues to preserve and honour this important legacy.
On Friday 8 November at 3pm, Senior Arts Specialist, Wilhelm Van Rensburg will present a talk: The Women of Bonnefoi: The Everard Group.
This is a group of women artists living in South Africa on a remote farm, Bonnefoi in the Eastern Transvaal from 1890 to the present day. They are remembered for their powerful, innovative, bold, colourful landscapes.