Etching "Cogmanskloof and Fort" (Block House near Montagu) by Francois Krige c.1970
Sometimes cataloged simply as Cogmanskloof Pass, near Montagu).
A limited edition piece number 25/25.
A Return to the Needle via Montagu
Though Krige was an exceptionally talented draftsman who studied graphic arts and intaglio techniques at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp during the 1930s, he largely set printmaking aside for decades to focus on oil painting and field sketching (notably as an official war artist in WWII).
That changed in 1966 when he married Sylvia Shear and settled into a 19th-century house in the Klein Karoo town of Montagu. The dramatic, twisted geological formations of the surrounding Cape Fold Mountains—specifically the dramatic Cogmanskloof Pass right on his doorstep—reignited his interest in the etching needle. The pass became one of his ultimate muses, allowing him to use intense, dense cross-hatching to capture the stark contrast between the blinding Karoo light and the deep shadows of the rock faces.
The Historic Anglo-Boer War Fort
The Old English Fort was built in 1899 by the British Army (specifically the Gordon Highlanders) at the onset of the Anglo-Boer War.
Positioned strategically above the pass, it commanded a view of the entire gorge to prevent Boer commandos from infiltrating the Western Cape via the Karoo.
It was constructed using local stone to blend seamlessly into the mountain, a feature Krige masterfully captures by integrating the man-made block house into the natural, jagged rhythm of his linework.
The Landscape of Thomas Bain
The pass itself, running below the cliffs Krige etched, is a monument to 19th-century engineering. It was constructed by the legendary road engineer Thomas Bain and completed in 1877, opening up trade to the interior. By focusing so heavily on the sheer verticality of the cliffs, Krige’s work emphasizes the isolation and imposing nature of the landscape that early travelers faced before Bain's road—and the British fort—forever altered the pass.
Small spot at the back, not visible in the front.
Page size: 280mm x 205mm
R1,500
