Figures of freedom and inspiration exhibited at UP libraries

With the celebration of Freedom Day on 27 April, the University of Pretoria (UP) Museums and the Department of Library Services are happy to have found a new home for two extraordinary figures. The sculptures of Walter Sisulu and Chief Albert Luthuli were created in 1994 by South African artist Phil Minnaar (1946-2014), who mostly produced busts and monuments of well-known political figures. The UP Museums were exploring spaces where the artworks would enhance their presence of representations of freedom and education equality for all and found the libraries to be the perfect space. The sculptures were welcomed by the DLS and are now exhibited in the Merensky 2 Library and the Groenkloof Campus Education Library.

The bust of Walter Sisulu is exhibited in Special collections on the 5^th floor of the Merensky 2 Library and stands tall next to a framed Freedom Charter of South Africa. Walter Max Ulyate Sisulu (1912-2003) was an anti-apartheid activist who served as a member of the African National Congress (ANC). His fight for freedom had him imprisoned for more than 25 years on Robben Island. After his release, Sisulu became deputy president of the ANC and was active in politics until he had to retire due to health issues in 1994. Sisulu was committed to his community in Soweto and also devoted much of his time to the growth and development of children and young adults. The sculpture of Walter Sisulu was also erected in bronze in the Sisulu Circle Memorial at the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden in Poortview, Johannesburg in 2018.

For his role in education equality not only in South Africa but in Africa, the bust of Chief Albert Luthuli (1898-1967) will move to the Education Library at Groenkloof in the first week of May. Chief Luthuli was not only a leader in his community Groutville, but he also became a leader for millions of black Africans in his slow and ongoing fight for freedom. He was educated as a teacher which led to his passion for fighting for equal education, human rights, and freedom for all Africans. Chief Luthuli was also President-General of the ANC where he fought for human rights. Chief Luthuli furthermore received a Nobel prize in 1961 for his non-violent struggle against apartheid.

The third sculpture by Phil Minnaar - in the same series -  of Oliver Reginald Kaizana Tambo (1917-1993) has been displayed in the OR Tambo Law Library of the University of Pretoria since 2017.

      The bust of Walter Sisulu