Excerpted from: Optima (Johannesburg) 34 (4) December 1986, pages 192-203.
Rorke's Drift, once an outpost, frontier settlement, crossroads, battle site during the Anglo-Boer war of 1879, and mission station for several denominations, seems to have a larger history than its size would suggest. It was the Swedish mission, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, that indelibly imprinted "Rorke's Drift" on the map of South African art history by establishing the Arts and Crafts Centre in 1962. Run by Pedar and Ulla Gowenius, it was a success almost from the start. Several now well-known artists passed through Rorke's Drift, including Azaria Mbatha and John Muafangejo. Its distinctive tapestries are exhibited and collected internationally. Although the Art School closed in 1982, due to political uncertainties, the workshop continues.
