Hester Rupert Art Museum

About Hester Rupert Art Museum

The foundation stone of the building was laid on 24 April 1821 to serve as a church and school for the Graaff-Reinet Missionary Society, and consecrated the same year as the sixth oldest church in South Africa, built on the traditional cruciform plan. Saved from demolition in 1965 through Dr Anton Rupert’s efforts, it was restored and reopened as the Hester Rupert Art Museum on 26 July 1966, housing 90 donated works and entrusted to the Town Council of Graaff-Reinet. Declared a national monument in 1984, the museum’s collection has since grown to 126 works by 106 artists, largely from the 1960s, forming a focused and historically significant body of art.