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Marcella de boom was born on 28 Jan 1945 in Pretoria,her Father Professor HPA de Boom a professor at Onderstepoort and well known both locally and abroad for his academic achievements and was awarded the Harkness fellowship to study further at Cornell University in Ithaca Upper new York State.
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Marcella as child was surrounded by animals and this
continues right throughout her life.The two things that she proclaims as a golden thread throughout her life are dogs and art. Marcella still today takes long walks with her pack of Africanis dogs.
Being a brilliant student, Marcella did not have to do Standard seven and matriculated a year ahead of her peers at Rustenburg highschool, Marcella started with art formally at the age of eleven studying under Ines Aab Tamsen. This relationship with Ines was to cement her passion and make her decide to pursue art as a career. After matriculating Marcella joined her Mother and younger sister Carin to go and stay with their Father who at this time was visiting Professor at Cornell university here Marcella studied art under the guidance of Professor Norman Daly who instilled in her the the discipline that art demands, Marcella quotes prof Daly as saying “ You think you are here because art is free, art is the most disciplined of all things. He also said to her in confidence “ I do not know if you will make it, but you do have the passion”
Marcella enrolled for an art degree at the University of Pretoria in 1963. She studied art under Gunther van der Reis, and had as tutors amongst others Leo Theron,A.P Grove,Bouffa and Nielant.Marcella obtained her degree in 1966.In 1967 marcella married.Art was still the passion that would carry Marcella through her life, even as a mother of two children she continued true to her passion and held several exhibitions solo and group exhibitions, along with many prominent South African artists.Notable one man exhibitions include The SAKV Nederlandse Bank building 1971, Cape town in 1978, Natal 1977 &1999, Marcella has also exhibited in Bloemfontein, Windhoek, Pietermaritzburg. Her international exhibitions include Norden and Hanover and in 1996 Marcella lived in Paris in the Art associations flat.
Marcellas daughter Ilse van Staden is a celebrated poet and winner of the Ingrid Jonker , and Eugene Marais prizes. Ilse still practices as a veterinary surgeon. Her brother Rolf is an accountant, married and has two children to whom Marcella is a friend and loving grandmother.
Having lived in diverse places such as Grootfontein, the Waterberg district, Melkrivier and Pretoria, as well as having traveled extensively, Marcella draws on the beauty and experiences of these places in her art.Since 1998 Marcella settled in the small mining town of Cullinan 40 kms east of Pretoria where she built a cobhouse and gallery known as Aldebran studio.Marcella still studies various subjects through UNISA and takes figure drawing lessons under Carl Jeppe at the Pretoria Association of Art.
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