Thijs Nel

(193*-) Artist, journalist, writer and playwright.

Born on a farm then called Waterkloof, now known as Ellisras, He matriculated at the agriculatural college in Tzaneen. After completing his military service for a year after school, he decided to study drama, but was dissuaded by his father. He was then appointed as a journalist at The Vaderland, where he stayed for a year, before completing a BA in Fine Arts at the University of Pretoria. He once again joined The Vaderland as art editor and remained there for 5 years, apart from a short break to go oversees to start a singing career.

Career as an artist

During the late sixties Thijs left South Africa for a second time for Europe and ended up in Paris where he worked and continued his studies. He remained there for 6 years. In this time he was also resident at the famous Cité Internationale-des-Arts in Paris (for two years), completing murals at Bois d’Arcy and Neuilly-sur-Marne, studied lithography with Henri Deprest and Jean-Paul Pons, and for the next two years shared a studio with opera director and designer Jean-Yves Taverniér, gaining valuable experience in working with light effects.

He returned to South Africa to set himself up as a professional artist, gaining international renown, having held over 40 exhibitions worldwide, with his work is represented in private and public collections in France, Great Britain, USA, Holland, Israel, Japan, Ethiopia, South Africa and China.

Career as an author

He has written various short stories, plays and anthologies.

His play Fluit vir die vlieë (“Whisitle for the flies”) was first performed at Kampustoneel, 1986, then put on professionally by PACT in 1987.