Roderick Freemantle Artist Bio

ART TRAINING:

Witwatersrand University Fine Art

Johannesburg College of Art Graphic Design

Oxford University, The Ruskin School of Fine Art. CFA (Oxon)

South African Associated Newspapers: Editorial Artist/Cartoonist

ABOUT RODERICK JOHN FREEMANTLE

Roderick Freemantle (born October 1951 in Johannesburg) has been fascinated by drawing and painting as long as he can remember. From the moment he discovered the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci in his parents' bookcase when he was eight years old he was determined to become an artist. 

Another transformative moment in the life of the young Roderick Freemantle was when he saw the rock paintings of Stone Age Bushman people for the first time.

And then, when he was an art student in England and saw the original paintings of the Great Masters, he began a life-long investigation into the materials and techniques of painting from ancient times to the present day.

Roderick and his wife Janet have been married for nearly 50 years. They have three sons and six grandchildren who visit them often in their beautiful old manor house situated in a remote West Coast area of South Africa known as the Sandveld.

The house is is a popular venue for art residencies, training courses in various art techniques and the making of artists' paint from locally sourced pigments.