Die lewe en werke van die Nederlandse kunstenaar Frans David Oerder

Abstract

Frans Oerder is op 7 April 1867 in Rotterdam gebore. Reeds vroeg in sy lewe het Frans tekenaanleg getoon, en was hy so verknog daaraan dat hy maar weinig aandag aan skoollesse en skoolgaan gegee het. Onder aansporing van ‘n neef, Hendrik Oerder, is hy vanaf sy twaalfde tot sy veertiende jaar toegelaat tot ‘n spesiale aandklas in die tekenkuns, terwyl hy vanaf sy veertiende jaar aan die Rotterdamse Akademie onder die kunstenaars, Jan Striening, A.H.R. Maasdijk en Johan Philip van der Kellen gestudeer het. Aan die genoemde Akademie het Derder homself hoofsaaklik op die skilderkuns toegelê. Die kursus, wat gewoonlik ses jaar geduur het, het hy binne vyf jaar afgelê. As besondere onderskeiding ontvang hy, nadat hy die gewone kursus wat strek oor ses jaar, binne vyf jaar voltooi het, ‘n silwermedalje vir figuurtekene. Oerder was toe agtien jaar oud. Hierna is ‘n reisbeurs na Italie deur koning Willem III aan hom toegeken. Vir twee jaar na die reis werk hy in die ateljee van die Franse portretskilder, Ernest Blane-Garin wat in Brussel woonagtig was. Op hierdie stadium het sy opleiding sy belangstelling in verskillende rigtings laat koers kry: die landskap, die stillewe met veral vrugtestudies, die interieur, die portret en figuurwerk. Oerder se ideaal was op hierdie stadium om die Nederlandse tradisioneel-realistiese kuns hoog te hou en om soos sy groot voorgangers met verf te teken. Op 23 jarige leeftyd en wel gedurende 1890, besluit Oerder om na Transvaal te vertrek met die oog op sy verdere skildersloopbaan. Aanvanklik was dit moeilik om as kunstenaar hier ‘n bestaan te maak. Die jong Oerder is as skilder by die "Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg Maatschappy" aangestel om die paaltjies langs die spoorlyn wat van Pretoria na Lourenco Marques in aanbou was, wit te verf. Met die uitbreek van die Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, het Oerder ‘n opdrag van die Suid-Afrikaanse regering ontvang om in samewerking met professor Nico Hofmeyer, dokumentasiesketse te maak aan die verskillende oorlogsfronte. Die gedenkboek waarvoor die sketse be-oog is, het nooit verskyn nie, maar meeste van hierdie sketse het bewaar gebly. Gedurende sy verblyf in Suid-Afrika, vanaf 1890 tot 1908, gaan die kunstenaar vir twee en ‘n half jaar op ‘n toer na Oos-Afrika, Zanzibar en die eiland Ibo. Sy terugreis na Europa in 1908, het hom eerstens na Italie geneem, waar Oerder vir ongeveer ‘n half jaar baie produktief gewerk het. Hierna reis hy verder na Holland, waar hy groot sukses behaal het met sy uitstallings. Sy verblyf in Holland, gedurende 1908 tot 1938, lewer veral hoogtepunte soos sy ontmoeting met Gerarda Petronella Pitlo, met wie hy gedurende 1909 in die eg verbind is, asook die uitbreek van die Eerste Wereldoorlog - 1914 tot 1919 - wat die Oerder gesin gesien en beleef het, en waarin hulle veral die groepe vlugtelinge gehelp het. Die toenemende oorlogsbedreiging in Europa gedurende die laat dertigerjare, het Oerder in 1938 laat besluit om weer na Suid-Afrika terug te keer. Toe reeds ‘n man van 70, het dit hom nie aan ondernemingsgees ontbreek nie. Tot en met sy dood op 15 Julie 1944, in Pretoria, het Oerder nougeset aan sy lewenstaak toegewy gebly, talle uitstallings gehou en nag heelwat uitstappies na Noord-Transvaal en die Kaap onderneern. As gebore en geskoolde Nederlander, is dit duidelik dat Oerder onteenseglik neëntiende-eeuer van die Haagse skool gebly het. In vergelyking met die kunstenaars wat die nuwe tyd ingelui het, het Oerder sy styl as realis behou. In Suid-Afrika het Oerder weinig invloed uitgeoefen op kunstenaars soos byvoorbeeld, Irma Stern, Maggie Loubser, Walter Battiss, Alexis Preller en Jean Welz. Hulls ontwikkeling het hy trouens nie meegemaak nie en na 1939 het dit duidelik aan hom verby gegaan. Met sy portretstudies, stillewes, landskappe en blomstudies, le Oerder die grondslag vir die Realisms in Suid-Afrika. As iemand van ‘n vorige generasie in Suid-Afrika, moet Oerder met reg gesien word as ‘n historiese figuur. In Nederland, met sy ryke kunstradisie, sou Oerder meer ‘n deeglike en taamlik akademiese skilder onder baie ander gewees het. Vir die kuns in Transvaal het Oerder daarenteen baie beteken, en behoort hy tot een van die belangrikste grondleggers van ‘n fondament, waarop tien jaar later die moderne kuns in Suid-Afrika tot ontwikkeling kon kom.

Frans David Oerder was born in Rotterdam on the 7th April 1867. At an early stage in his life Frans showed an aptitude for drawing and he was so interested in his drawings that he neglected his school lessons and schooling. At the instance of his cousin, Hendrik Oerder, he was admitted to special evening classes in drawing from his twelfth to fourteenth years. From his fourteenth year he studied art at the Rotterdam Academy under the artists, Jan Striening, A.H.R. Maasdijk and Johan Philip van der Kellen. While at the abovementioned academy, Oerder applied himself mainly to the art of painting. He completed the usual six-year course in five years. He received a silver medal for figure drawings, as a token of merit for having completed six-year course in five years. At that stage Oerder was eighteen years old. After this a travel bursary to Italy was awarded to him by King William III. After his return he worked in the studio of the French portrait artist, Ernest Blane-Garin who lived in Brussels, for two years. At this stage his training directed his interest to various aspects of art such as: landscapes, still life mostly with fruit, interiors, portrait and figure work. At this stage it was Oerder’s ideal to keep up the traditional Netherlands realistic art and to follow his predecessors by drawing with paint. In 1890 when Oerder was 23 years old he decided to visit the Transvaal in order to further his painting career. Here he initially found it difficult to earn his keep as an artist. The young Oerder was commissioned by the "Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche-Spoorweg-Maatschappy” to paint the markers along the railway line which was being built between Pretoria and Lourenco Marques. At the declaration of the Anglo-Boer War, Oerder was commissioned by the S.A. Government to make documentation sketches at the various lines of front. These had to be made in collaboration with Professor Nico Hofmeyer. This remembrance book for which the sketches had been intended, was never published, although most of them remained conserved.

During his South African stay from 1890 to 1908, the artist took a tour of two and a half years to East Africa, Zanzibar and the Island of Ibo. His return to Europe in 1908 took him firstly to Italy, where he was very productive during his half year stay. Thereafter he travelled to Holland, where he had great success with his exhibitions. His stay in Holland during 1909 to 1938 was marked by several high lights, one of which was his encounter with Gerharda Petronella Pitlo, to whom he was married in 1909. These highlights also included the declaration of World War I - 1914 to 1919 - which was witnessed by the Derder family, and during which they gave assistance to many refugees. The increasing threat of war during the years 130, persuaded Oerder to return to South Africa in 1938. Despite his 70 years he did not lack initiative and Oerder devoted himself to his vocation at Pretoria until his death on July 15th, 1944. During this period he made several excursions to the Northern Transvaal and the Cape Province. Being a born and bred Netherlander, it is clear that Oerder remained a scholar of The Hague school. Compared with the artists who introduced the new era, Oerder maintained his style as a realist. In South Africa Oerder exercised little influence on the artists, i.e. Irma Stern, Maggie Loubser, Walter Battiss, Alexis Preller, Jean Welz. He did in fact not take part in their development, and after 1939 it clearly escaped his attention. Oerder founded the South African realism with his portraits, still lives, landscapes and flower pieces. As a member of the former generation in South Africa, Oerder can justly be regarded as a historical figure. In the Netherlands, with her rich art tradition, Derder would comparatively have been a more thorough and academic painter. On the contrary, Oerder was one of the most important founders of an art tradition, which caused the development of modern art in South Africa ten years later.