Wife of top artist arrested for his murder
THE wife of acclaimed artist Walter Meyer has been arrested for his murder.
News of his death emerged on Wednesday. Police said the painter‚ 52, based in Upington‚ was “stabbed with a sharp object” on December 22.
Yesterday‚ police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Dimakatso Mooi said his wife Sophia Meyer, 29, was arrested in connection with his murder.
She appeared in court on Wednesday and is set to appear in the Upington Magistrate’s Court today to apply for bail.
Arts Minister Nathi Mthethwa tweeted: “We are shocked and saddened to learn about the tragic events which have led to the passing of iconic South African artist Walter Meyer‚ whose works have been exhibited and celebrated for over three decades.”
Meyer‚ who was born in Aliwal North in the Eastern Cape‚ showcased his work as far afield as Germany‚ New York and Namibia.
He counts Power Corporation‚ Canada‚ the Rupert Foundation and South African Reserve Bank among a long list of collectors of his work.
“He is widely celebrated as possibly the finest painter of distinctly South African landscapes that this country has yet produced‚” Ivor Powell wrote in the Sunday Times.
Ruth Jacobsen wrote in Business Day: “These paintings are extraordinarily truthful‚ not merely to a catalogue of factual detail‚ but to profoundly experienced reality. Collectively they speak of the integrity of the artist’s purpose.” — DDC