JEWISH AFFAIRS ROSH HASHANAH 2012unveiling was a very rewarding experience, andas a result <strong>of</strong> that commission I went on to dobusts <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>of</strong> England commissioned a head <strong>of</strong>King Sobhuza <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>of</strong> Sir RichardLuyt, Principal <strong>of</strong> the University <strong>of</strong> Cape Town.During the sitting, he related his wartimeexperiences and those from when he was Governor<strong>of</strong> Kenya. I had been told that Glenava, thePrincipal’s house, was haunted. While working, Isaw a chair move. I looked up every so <strong>of</strong>ten, 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 <strong>of</strong>Citicom wanting to know if I would please do theheads <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>South</strong>Africa. 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 <strong>of</strong> SteveBiko, commissioned by Donald Woods. The latter,a gregarious and genial man, was one <strong>of</strong> the mostremarkable <strong>South</strong> <strong>African</strong>s <strong>of</strong> his time. He wasthe editor <strong>of</strong> the East London Daily Dispatch, andafter Biko’s murder, became the first privatecitizen to address the UN Security Council. Heeventually fled <strong>South</strong> Africa and settled in theUK. Donald and the Biko family helped meenormously to make a sculpture worthy <strong>of</strong> SteveBiko’s stature. The statue is now in the main‘piazza’ <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>of</strong> 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 <strong>of</strong>energy 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 <strong>of</strong> PietermaritzburgSir Richard Luyt – University <strong>of</strong> Cape TownPresident Sam Nujoma <strong>of</strong> NamibiaHarry Oppenheimer – De Beers, KimberleyPresident Museweni <strong>of</strong> Uganda14 heads <strong>of</strong> the Randlords – ErnestOppenheimer Recreation HallColonel A Johnstone – head <strong>of</strong> Boy Scouts1973Lord and Lady Baden Powell – Boy ScoutHeadquartersSir Percy Fitzpatrick – The Johannesburg ZooChief Hosea Kutako – Chief <strong>of</strong> the Herero,NamibiaPr<strong>of</strong>essor Raymond Dart – University <strong>of</strong>WitwatersrandPr<strong>of</strong>essor Philip Tobias – University <strong>of</strong>WitwatersrandIan 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 <strong>of</strong>MoshoeshoeSteve Biko – City <strong>of</strong> 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