Meet Robyn Pretorius: Mind, Body, and Soul Artist

Robyn Pretorius is a remarkable artist whose story-based portraiture connects individuals through art. Hailing from the Cape Flats, Robyn’s journey as an artist has been shaped by numerous challenges, yet her determination to pursue her passion remains unwavering.
Through her art, she aims to inspire aspiring creatives in her community to believe in their dreams and nurture their artistic talents.

Introducing Afri being, Robyn Pretorius

A proud South African artist, Robyn began her creative journey at a young age. Her focus has evolved into developing story-based portraiture, with the primary goal of fostering connection among people. Robyn’s artwork challenges societal norms, encouraging viewers to embrace diversity.

Robyn’s Past and Current Achievements

Among Robyn’s notable achievements is her portrait of Muhammad Ali, showcased at the FNB Joburg Art Fair in 2017. Commissioned by the South African Mint for the Kruger Rand’s 50th Anniversary, this painting gained international recognition, now residing in the Kruger Rand’s Private Collection. In 2014, Robyn participated in her first international group exhibition, representing South Africa in a New York Trade Mission. Additionally, she has been featured as Radisson Red’s Artist of the Month and currently has her artwork displayed on a prominent billboard in Cape Town, thanks to the Art Initiative ArtPublika.

The Power of Collaboration

Robyn is a strong advocate for continuous artistic education through collaboration with fellow creatives. Recently, she partnered with Cape Town fashion brand Unknown Union, performing alongside their clothing collection during the African Fashion International Week. Robyn believes in empowering the younger generation to pursue their artistic dreams, emphasizing the importance of community support.

In an inspiring conversation with AfriShaper Columnist @vuyooyiyanetwork, Robyn shared her insights while participating in the @gloart.be art residency in Belgium: 

“We need to celebrate our identities in the best way we can and, most importantly, allow others to celebrate. We all need to live our truths—for the sake of sanity. This is why I became an artist.”

Robyn’s story is a story of A Journey of Resilience. Raised by a single mother in Belhar, Cape Flats, Robyn’s artistic talent was nurtured from an early age. Despite the societal challenges during the early years of Apartheid, her mother recognized her potential and enrolled her in the Tygerberg Art Centre. At just 13, Robyn won an illustration competition with the Sunday Times Newspaper, becoming their youngest cartoonist with her comic strip character, TOKO.

This early recognition fueled her curiosity about the South African art industry. After completing her education, Robyn supported herself in the retail sector but soon realized that her true happiness lay in art. She took a leap of faith, leaving her job to fully embrace her artistic journey.

The Moment of Transformation

For Robyn, art has always been her first language. She truly embraced her identity as an artist three years ago when she left her unfulfilling job to pursue her passion full-time, culminating in her first independent exhibit in 2015.

Overcoming Challenges

Despite early exposure to the art world, Robyn faced the challenge of convincing her community that art could be a viable career. This struggle impacted her confidence, but deep down, she knew her unique talent had a purpose. Determined to celebrate local stories and identities, Robyn now occupies spaces once deemed unachievable. 
Through her work, she aspires to encourage other aspiring creatives from her community, showing them that opportunities exist. “We need to celebrate our identities in the best way we can and allow others to celebrate,” she emphasizes. “We all need to live our truths—for the sake of sanity. This is why I became an artist.”

What inspires your art?

People inspire my art. People in my community and the people who I’ve met. People challenge me. I can be introverted at times, but my art forces me to take note of the details that matter. When you are able to silence the noise and the negative influences you can be more connected with your experiences and with the people who enter your life or social circle. Because of this, I have an endless array of stories and portraits to paint. The more portraits or stories I can visually interpret the more I can see how similar we all are as a human race. Your story could be my story, Mine could be yours. His can be hers and hers can be his. There are so many things that connect and at the same tie still be uniquely different.“Fashion meets art…in absolute awe at this moment…seeing my painting come to life.”

As a rising artist, what can you tell us about being supported in South African Art market?

Thanks to BASA (Business and Arts South Africa) I was able to learn more about solidifying my art practice and understanding South African art markets. Exciting as my journey may be now, I do know that it is a journey of constant learning and dedication. One can never really be prepared for the challenges of an ever-changing art industry and that’s why I feel it’s important to always set goals for yourself and do your best to reach them without having to sacrifice your values or your art. One thing I have learnt is that the art industry can be attractive and chaotic, and if you’re not certain about what kind of artist you want to be then later you might be the one at some sort of loss.

What improvement you would like to see in the art world? And how can we inspire more young people from local communities to follow their artistic talents?

There is a global transition happening, a sort conscience awakening. More and more people are coming out with something to say and challenging certain structures or systems within the art world. Here in SA, there has recently been a more diverse introduction of artists, but certain structures within our art industry still do not favour the true diversity of our country. I strongly believe it starts with school. If all public schools could offer art education or art after-school programmes in marginalised communities, we would have more art educators in the future. We would have more meaningful art that speaks to all people by our people and there would be a more equal representation of races and cultures. I was blessed to have been given early foundations in art, but for many aspiring artists from my community, it’s merely a mirage. That is why their experiences and creativity will never be exhibited at art shows or Art Fairs unless this changes. We need to show them we believe in them! This is why art has become so much more meaningful to me. As a person of colour from the Cape Flats, I am taking this opportunity to share my art with South Africa and the world. My mere existence in the art industry is a form of activism already.I do hope that South Africa will invest more in art development. Not only focus on celebrating the “culture” of art and its misrepresentation of art, but actually, invest in art development within the public school sector. I feel this would allow a more diverse and inclusive discussion of arts and artistic representation. We can’t always only encourage a select few. South African youth is our future and we need to develop our youth in the best way we can if we really want to see change. There is a lot of hidden talent out there!

Tell us about exciting recent projects you’ve worked on?

At the moment I am experiencing my first art residency something that I have been working towards since the day I decided to become a fulltime artist. I feel extremely grateful to be selected as one of the five artists around the world and to start this chapter at probably one of the most prestigious art residencies in the world @gloart.beI am also working on a collection for next year’s Sanlam Portrait Award group exhibition. I will be exhibiting next to the winner (and the top 40 artworks) at the very elite Rust en Vrede Gallery in Durbanville.Last month I worked with an awesome new art initiative, ArtPublika, which allowed me to the opportunity to feature my artwork on a billboard in Strand Street. The artwork featured is inspired by Cape Town as well as my personal connection to it and now Afribeing.  

“I worked with an awesome new art initiative, ArtPublika, which allowed me to the opportunity to feature my artwork on a billboard in Strand Street. The artwork featured is inspired by Cape Town as well as my personal connection to it and now Afribeing.”

Complete this sentence: My Afri being power is…

My Afribeing power is …. to connect people with my art and encourage more youth to follow their artistic talent. 

Contributor: Vuyo Oyiya @vuyooyiya 
Creative Direction: Liza Weschta and Lindi Hingston
Photography: Robyn Pretorius