Ivan Graham Mitford-Barberton

Ivan Graham MITFORD-BARBERTON ARCA ARBS FRGS ( 1896 - 1976 )

Born 1896 Somerset East, Cape Died 1976

A sculptor of portraits busts, animals and figures who traveled a lot and it was in Kenya that he found many of his inspirations. Worked in wood, stone, bronze and ivory.

Studies: 1919 - 1922 - Grahamstown School of Art 1923 - 25 - Royal College of Art, London, under Derwent Wood (1871-1926) and Henry Moore (1898-1986)

Exhibitions : Participated in various group exhibitions in SA and Zimbabwe from 1930. 1930 -First of several solo exhibitions in Cape Town, South Africa and Kenya 1948 - Tate Gallery, London, South African Art Exhibition

Represented : Albany Museum, Grahamstown Ann Bryant Gallery, East London Durban Art Gallery Johannesburg Art Gallery Nairobi Art Gallery, Kenya Nottingham Art Gallery, UK Suid Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns, Pretoria National Gallery, Cape Town University of Cape Town University of Stellenbosch William Humphreys Art Gallery, Kimberley

Public Commissions : 1820 Settlers Monument, Grahamstown 1935 - Frieze for South African Mutual Building, Darling Street, Cape Town Provincial Administration Building, Wale Street, Cape Town African Homes Trust Building, Cape Town 1968-73 - Jan Smuts statue, Adderley Street, Cape Town Statue of Wolraad Woltemade, South African Mutual, Pinelands, Cape Town 1960 - Four springboks, Springs, Transvaal.

From Familia, the Article the BARBERs of Barberton is written by Ivan MITFORD-BARBERTON. Here are some extracts.

"The founders of Barberton, Fred and Harry BARBER... the family came from Castleton in High Peak, the mountainous part of northern Derbyshire, England, and can be traced back for twelve generations to Roger BARBAR who was Forester for the villages of Edale and Ashop and held the Forest Pleas about 1522 as recorded in the Manor Rolls of Castledon. The earliest record is that of Richard LE BARBUR [the bearded] who was born in the reign of Henry III [c. 1260]. In 1283 Richard's wife Margaret sued John CARBONEL for her dower in Brocton, High Peak. Margaret was probably the daughter of this John CARBONEL and presumably had not received her wedding settlement and had to take the matter to law. Other records show that members of the Barber family paid yearly rent for farms or booths in High Peak.

When HENRY V was fighting in France, Thomas BARBOUR [surgeon] and Roger BARBOUR were at the Battle of Agincourt in 1416. There was no fixed spelling in thsoe days which changed with each generation.

Thomas BARBER [1771-1843] was a well-known portrait painter of Nottingham who exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy and painted many of the aristocracy in the Midlands. He married Mary, daughter of Hugh and Anne ATHERSTONE. It was her brother Dr John ATHERSTONE who came out to South Africa with the 1820 Settlers. Thomas BARBER, the painter had several sons, but the two who came out to South Africa were Hugh and Frederick. Frederick was syudying at Heidelburg University, Germany, with cousin Dr. William Guybon ATHERSTONE and they came to South Africa in the same ship in 1839. The elder brother Hugh came out the following year and it was his son Hilton who founded the HILTON-BARBER family.

Frederick BARBER [1813-92] married Mary Elizabeth [1818-99] daughter of 1820 Settler Mile BOWKER of Tharfield. She was a truly remarkable woman and South Africa has produced few to rival her with brush and pen and her knowledge of Botany, natural history and entomology was outstanding.

Frederick and Mary had two sons Frederick Hugh [1847-1919] and Henry MITFORD BARBER [afterwards MITFORD-BARBERTON] 1850-1920. They were with their parents in the rush to the diamond fields in 1870. ....so became big game hunters... Harry was gored by a buffalo on the Gwaai River in 1876... Fred nursed his brother for three months.. On another occasion Harry was mauled by a leopard ... on his left shoulder, cheek and neck, leaving honourable scars of this adventure. As early as 1875 Fred went on a hunting expedition to the Victoria Falls. They went on the Hunters Road through Bechuanaland via Pandamatenga, left the wagon and did the last sixty miles on foot. The brothers knew King Lobengula well, but were held hostage on one occasion when he was anticipating trouble which frtunately did not materialise.

After the founding of Barberton in 1884 the brothers went to the Rand where they held positions of importance, made and lost fortunes... immigrated to Kenya and were numbered among the pioneers and coffee planters. They are buried in Eldoret.

Fred BARBER married Eira EVANS and had one son , living in Nairobi [1964]. He has no family. Henry MITFORD-BARBERTON married Mary Layard, daughter of Cmdt. Holden BOWKER, M.L.A. and had four sons - Ivan [sculptor], Raymond, Renshaw and Alban. There are several granddchildren.

Ivan Mitford-Barberton. Sculptor, autobiography, 1962, HAUM, Cape Town. He also wrote the book “Barbers of the Peak”.