Last night, Andrew Meintjes was added to the list of great South African artists – who not only produce work, but support the arts, and are giving within the community at large – that have been killed for next to nothing. Like Gito Baloi, who was only a few months ago slain for the pocket cash in his wallet after playing a gig, Andrew was shot (several times) in his own studio.
His killers only left with a cell phone.
Friends, family, artists, and art appreciators will mourn the loss of a giving, caring, committed, excited and excitable man for months, years, to come. It’s with a great sadness that I’m beginning to recognize how often this happens in South Africa, that I see now how the atrocities I claim newspapers over-inflate, are perhaps more real than we’d all like to admit.
Andrew gave me many gifts in the time I got to know him. I’ve no doubt that a lot of people can say the same.
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Thanks for the heads up. Found an obscure note on the Photoza site that was a little thin on details. Did a google and picked up your site. I’m sitting here in Hong Kong with one of Andrew’s Panfield cameras. Wrote to him a few months back about getting it repaired. Looks like I may have to wait a while for that to happen now. A bummer all round and what a waste. Never got to meet him and yet, he was always part of the circle at that time. Left RSA in 1990 for much of a lesser yet related reasons – got fed up with my car being broken into every couple of weeks. Still, not the same thing. My sympathies to all.
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