Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 9

Nelson Mandela
The Courtyard - Nelson Mandela, South African, inspiration, Robben Island, hope

2003

About the Item

Nelson Mandela, The Courtyard, Signed Limited Edition Lithograph Many people are unaware that Nelson Mandela turned his hand to art in his 80's as a way of leaving a legacy for his family. He spent time with an art tutor and learnt to draw. In this piece Mandela has drawn the courtyard that his cell looked onto on Robben Island. It was a grim wasteland where he was eventually able to cultivate vegetables which he, cut off from his family, took special pleasure in nourishing. In this piece, Nelson Mandela has drawn The Courtyard on Robben Island. This piece comes in 3 parts. The Colour Lithograph, the Motivation and the Photograph. The colour lithograph bears Nelson Mandela's pencil signature, whilst the signature on the motivation is printed from the plate. The photograph has been signed in pencil by the photographer, Grant Warren. The Artist’s Motivation reads: “The courtyard in Robben Island was an unfriendly, empty and barren place. It was a sombre reminder of where I was. From the beginning of my imprisonment I asked to start a garden in the courtyard, to change this sad looking place. After years of refusing my request, we were finally given permission to plant a small garden on a narrow patch of earth against a wall. Being able to plant and nourish life in this prison courtyard offered me a sense of freedom and satisfaction that is hard to put into words even today. A garden is one of the few things in prison that one could control. A powerful memory that I have is of a beautiful tomato plant that I coaxed from tiny seed to tender seedling to a strong plant that gave plump bright red juicy tomatoes. Despite my efforts the plant began to wither and die and nothing I did would heal it. When it died I took it carefully from the soil, washed its roots and buried it in a corner of the garden. I felt sad. It once again reminded me of where I was, and the hopeless mess I felt at being unable to nourish other relationships in my life. My wife, my children, my family and my friends. It made me realise the beauty, simplicity and sacred value of family, of loved ones or friends. I swore to myself that I would never take another human being, their friendship or their love for granted ever again.” An edition of 350 lithographs was launched on Robben Island in 2003.
  • Creator:
    Nelson Mandela (1918 - 2013)
  • Creation Year:
    2003
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 15.75 in (40 cm)Width: 20.08 in (51 cm)Depth: 1.58 in (4 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Knowle Lane, GB
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: The Courtyard1stDibs: LU120714348701
More From This SellerView All
You May Also Like
  • GIARDINO SEGRETTO Signed Lithograph Lakeside Villa Mediterranean Landscape, Moon
    By Jim Buckels
    Located in Union City, NJ
    GIARDINO SEGRETTO is a hand drawn limited edition lithograph created in 1988 by the Iowa born artist, Jim Buckels who is known for his dream-like ima...
    Category

    1980s Contemporary Landscape Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

  • CRYSTAL CLEAR Signed Lithograph, Blue Water Twilight Landscape, Boathouse, Dock
    By Frank Licsko
    Located in Union City, NJ
    CRYSTAL CLEAR is an original hand drawn lithograph(not a photo reproduction or digital print)by the artist Frank Licsko printed using traditional hand lithography techniques on archi...
    Category

    1980s Contemporary Landscape Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

  • JR au Louvre, 29 Mars 2019, 18h08 - Contemporary 21st Century Print Edition 2021
    By JR artist
    Located in Draper, UT
    JR, JR au Louvre, 29 Mars 2019, 18h08 Contemporary, 21st Century, Print, Edition 20 colors lithograph on white paper BFK Rives - 300 grams Edition of 250 35 x ...
    Category

    2010s Contemporary Landscape Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

  • Vintage Rene Ricard Mal de Fin: Paintings 1989-1990 poster with poetry and ocean
    By Rene Ricard
    Located in New York, NY
    Original poster commemorating Rene Ricard's 1990 exhibition Paintings 1989-1990 at the Petersburg Press Gallery, New York. The image reproduces his...
    Category

    1990s Contemporary Landscape Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph, Offset

  • Leaves and Vines
    By Claire Sherman
    Located in Lyons, CO
    Color lithograph, Ed. 30. Sherman’s paintings and prints propel the viewer into a claustrophobic and unstable world through a perspective that shimmies between representation and ab...
    Category

    2010s Contemporary More Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

  • As the Moon Rises
    By Susan Hall
    Located in Lyons, CO
    Color lithograph with pochoir, Edition25 Susan Hall lived and worked for many years in New York City before returning to her childhood home in Point Reyes Station, California. She depicts moments suspended in the mysterious light of this place of marshland, wave-broken coast line and tawny, rolling hills. In Susan's latest prints Solitary Oak and As the Moon Rises...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary More Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

Recently Viewed

View All