Fanie Eloff

Fanie Eloff was educated at the old Staatsmodelskool in Pretoria but then moved to Paris with his family. The grandson of the South African President Paul Kruger, he initially wanted to study geology, but he decided to become a sculptor in 1908, stimulated by the work of Auguste Rodin. From time to time, however, he returned to South Africa for several years and also spent his last years there. He was fortunate to be a man of means and had a considerable private income, which allowed him to concentrate on his art, which enabled him to maintain the highest of artistic standards without pandering to popular demand. Therefore, his output was comparatively small and he was a slow and considered worker with most of his work executed in marble or bronze. He is known for the bust of South African Boer War general Koos de la Rey, which was placed at his gravesite.

The bronze statuette Boxer, one of Eloff’s best known works, is 105 cm high. It was first exhibited at the Salon d’Automne in Paris in 1912. The artist later donated the figure to the library of the University of Pretoria. The Javelin Thrower, also a bronze, was created in 1924 for the Olympic Games. In 1929 it was shown again at an exhibition in Johannesburg.