Alexander Rose-Innes (1915 - 1996)

Born in 1915 in Beauford West, Alexander Rose-Innes developed an aptitude for drawing at an early age. The Rose-Innes family moved to Port Elizabeth in 1927, where he began his art studies at the Art School of the Port Elizabeth Technical College, under Francis Pickford and Jack Heath. After completing his studies, he enrolled as an apprentice sign-writer, continuing to pursue his art in his free time.

Rose-Innes took up employment as a commercial sign-writer in order to earn a living. He joined the army at the start of the Second World War in 1940 and was based in Pretoria, Kimberley and Cape Town during the following five years. Following the war, he decided to dedicate himself to his art, ...