Non-Europeans Only by John Dronsfield (1942)

This 1942 publication holds a notable place in mid-20th-century South African art and social history.

The title Non-Europeans Only directly appropriates the discriminatory racial segregation signs that were ubiquitous in South Africa during that era. By using this phrase as the title for a collection celebrating the daily life, humanity, and dignity of Cape Town's Coloured community, English-born artist John Dronsfield ironically subverted state-sanctioned racial division.

Published six years before the official institution of political Apartheid in 1948, the portfolio features 36 minimalist, single-line ink drawings. The introduction by literary critic Christina van Heyningen highlights how Dronsfield stripped away sentimentalism to capture authentic physical expressions, movement, and urban street life without racial caricature.

Printed in Cape Town by the Cape Times for publisher Denis Bullough, the portfolio was issued in a small run of only 350 numbered copies, each individually hand-signed by Dronsfield.

Dronsfield emigrated to Cape Town in 1939 after spending 16 years working as a theatrical stage designer in London. His background in stage composition heavily influenced his visual technique, allowing him to define complex figures and spatial dynamics using a single, continuous contour line.

250mm x 305mm

Corners bumped; stained; surface wear; pages creased. All 36 plates present; complete.

R1,500