Above: An exhibition featuring photographs, personal letters,
quotations from speeches and news articles and celebrating
the life and times of Helen Suzman will open in New York.
Tadias Magazine
Events News
Published: Friday, January 22, 2009
New York (Tadias) – Long before there was a movie called Invictus (Hollywood’s recent depiction of the true story of Nelson Mandela’s famous partnership with a young captain of South Africa’s National Rugby team, Francois Pienaar, during the early days of his presidency), there was another image capturing an enduring relationship born out of South Africa’s long, historical struggle against apartheid. Helen Suzman struck up her warm friendship with Mandela in 1967 while he was at the infamous Robben Island Prison. Suzman was the only member of parliament at the time demanding an end to the apartheid system. “It was an odd and wonderful sight to see this courageous woman peering into our cells and strolling around our courtyard,” Mandela wrote about her in his autobiography A Long Walk to Freedom. “She was the first and only woman ever to grace our cells.” She was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and is a recipient of the 1978 United Nations Award for Human Rights. Not surprisingly, when the peace activist died last year flags were ordered flown at half-mast in South Africa.
A traveling exhibition celebrating the travails and achievements of her life will be on display at Barnard College, Columbia University on Tuesday, February 9, 2010.
In the movie Invictus, Nelson Mandela, then the newly elected President of South Africa (played by Morgan Freeman) inspires Francois Pienaar, the captain of the lackluster rugby team to motivate his teammates to become world champions. The result is a sporting event that is considered to be a pivotal moment in South Africa’s history as it helps defuse the country’s political tension and paves the way for forgiveness through the nation’s much celebrated Truth and Reconciliation Commission. There can be no doubt that South Africans are hoping to recapture the same feeling of unity in 2010 (this time through soccer and under a new President) as they prepare to host the World Cup later this year. But in the mean time, New Yorkers will be treated to a show honoring one of South Africa’s legendary leaders.
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If you go: The graphic panel installation featuring photographs, personal letters, quotations from speeches and news articles examining the life and times of one of the bravest women of the last century will be on display at the Diana Center at Barnard College, Columbia University (117th Street & Broadway) on Tuesday, February 9, 2010. You can learn more at www.barnard.edu/bcrw or www.helesuzmanexhibition.com.
Video: Helen Suzman on meeting Nelson Mandela
Video: Helen Suzman Dies
Video: Movie Trailer for Invictus HD
Excellent story! I hope the exhibit comes to D.C.
We at the Helen Suzman Exhibition Project are thrilled with this excellent coverage from TADIAS. I hope that readers will go to http://www.helensuzmanexhibition.com for more detailed information about the traveling exhibition. The show is on tour throughout the US through 2012. It is now in New Orleans and opens at Barnard College in New York City on February 9, 2010, where it will be installed through March, 2010.