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JEWISH AFFAIRS ROSH HASHANAH 2012unveiling was a very rewarding experience, andas a result of that commission I went on to dobusts of Lord and Lady Baden-Powell. Lady BPdid not want to have herself sculpted, but waseventually inveigled to my home, and I did her asshe was taping her life story. I did Lord BP fromphotographs. The busts were unveiled at the CapeAnglican Cathedral in a very solemn and emotionalceremony.whereupon he laughed, picked up the chair andreleased a turtle that had got jammed underneathit. So much for ghosts!The Bank of England commissioned a head ofKing Sobhuza of Swaziland from me. I can writea book about that experience. He spoke goodEnglish and when it was completed he suggestedwe unveil it privately one evening. This tookplace on his sweeping lawn, with just the king andI present.The author with her King Sobhuza headLord Baden-PowellA rather fun commission was of Sir RichardLuyt, Principal of the University of Cape Town.During the sitting, he related his wartimeexperiences and those from when he was Governorof Kenya. I had been told that Glenava, thePrincipal’s house, was haunted. While working, Isaw a chair move. I looked up every so often, andthe damn chair kept moving. I told Sir Richardthat I knew the story about the house being haunted,Lady Baden-Powell and HeadOne day, I was contacted by Peter Haskins ofCiticom wanting to know if I would please do theheads of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu andOliver Tambo. My shock and surprise can hardlybe imagined. You cannot believe how lucky thiscountry was to have been served by men of thiscalibre. There were others as well, but these threewere true giants and they were now in my hands.The wonderful openness and memorableconversations we had as I worked are beyondwords. Walter Sisulu, in my opinion, was thegreat man behind all that happened in SouthAfrica. He was a happy, loving family man, and Iknew his wife very well – we were friends. I alsoshared a very personal hour with Adelaide Tambowhen Oliver died, and we cried together. He hadwritten such a beautiful love letter to her beforehis death.Then came the larger-than-life statue of SteveBiko, commissioned by Donald Woods. The latter,a gregarious and genial man, was one of the mostremarkable South Africans of his time. He wasthe editor of the East London Daily Dispatch, andafter Biko’s murder, became the first privatecitizen to address the UN Security Council. Heeventually fled South Africa and settled in theUK. Donald and the Biko family helped meenormously to make a sculpture worthy of SteveBiko’s stature. The statue is now in the main‘piazza’ of East London and was unveiled byNelson Mandela.Besides portraiture, I loved doing large birds– flamingos, cranes etc. – as well as buck. I wasbusy eight hours a day creating, listening to my6
JEWISH AFFAIRS ROSH HASHANAH 2012Press report on unveiling of Steve Biko statueOliver Tambo, by Naomi Jacobsonmusic and eating Mars bars when I got hungry.Everything beautiful fascinated me. I becameinterested in other arts and crafts, like beadingart, needlework, went to lectures on antiques,read histories and travelled overseas to learnabout different cultures. I had an abundance ofenergy and really drove my husband to distraction.As you will have gathered, I have alwayslooked for ways and means to honour, teach andhelp others through ART. After a long day’swork, I would try and relax, listening to musicwhile sewing, beading, reading and learning. Icould not stop working and now, 87 years-old butstill 21 in spirit, am as eager as ever to continue.There has never been a tomorrow in my life – ithas always been today that counts.With my husband, Larry, working on the BikostatueAPPENDIX: Select works by NaomiJacobsonPortraitureAlan Paton – University of PietermaritzburgSir Richard Luyt – University of Cape TownPresident Sam Nujoma of NamibiaHarry Oppenheimer – De Beers, KimberleyPresident Museweni of Uganda14 heads of the Randlords – ErnestOppenheimer Recreation HallColonel A Johnstone – head of Boy Scouts1973Lord and Lady Baden Powell – Boy ScoutHeadquartersSir Percy Fitzpatrick – The Johannesburg ZooChief Hosea Kutako – Chief of the Herero,NamibiaProfessor Raymond Dart – University ofWitwatersrandProfessor Philip Tobias – University ofWitwatersrandIan Player – Wilderness and WildlifeKing Sobhuza – SwazilandSir Seretse Khama – BotswanaChief Jonathan – LesothoChief Mangosuthu Buthelezi – for the ZuluNationNelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo– Robben IslandNelson Mandela – a gift to Parliament by theGuy Martin TrustLife-Size StatuesShaka Zulu for the Zulu Nation – UlundiCetshwayo for the Zulu NationMakontwani for Lesotho – General ofMoshoeshoeSteve Biko – City of East LondonChief Phatudi for LebowaSan Bushman – Windhoek MuseumA tribute to women: ‘The Contessa’, a threemetre-high sculpture, and “Gabriella’, a lifesizenude study in bronze – MichelangeloHotel, Johannesburg.7
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