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01 June 2020 | Story Rulanzen Martin | Photo Stephen Collett
Prof Nico Luwes at the 2019 June Chancellor's Dinner.

It is a double honour for Prof Nico Luwes, emeritus professor at the University of the Free State (UFS), who received both the Gerhard Beukes Prize and the Medal of Honour for Drama from the Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns. Not only is the prize a great honour, but also the fact that Prof Luwes could attend the Afrikaans class of the same Prof Gerhard Beukes as a student at the UFS.

“For this very reason – and because it was unexpected – it is really a great honour for which I am deeply grateful,” says Prof Luwes, who is currently working in the Department of Drama and Theatre Arts.  Prof Luwes is a leading figure in local and national theatre circles and has written many plays. “I was able to realise myself at the UFS for so many years. I am also grateful that the university and the Department of Drama and its staff have given me and fellow artists so many opportunities to create in our excellent theatres.”

Prof Luwes retired as Head of Department at the end of 2019 and is currently a research fellow in the same department. He is also working on a PhD in creative writing in the Department of Afrikaans and Dutch, German and French at the UFS, under the guidance of Prof Henning Pieterse. “I am also cleaning up two novels that will hopefully be published this year,” he says.

Prof Luwes part of several theatre initiatives 
Over the years, Prof Luwes has been involved in various initiatives for the well-being and survival of the theatre industry, such as the Sanlam theatre initiative and the UFS Department of Drama and Theatre Arts’ Free State Theatre Acts. “The Sanlam theatre initiative was devised by me and Rudie van Rensburg. The project has been able to boost the careers of professional playwrights and students for years.” Drama and Theatre Arts students from the UFS dominated the Sanlam project “with many awards for plays and producing”. 

The Free State Theatre Acts (FACTS) was launched with great financial support from the Lottery and has kept theatre going and created jobs in the Free State for many years. 

The therapeutic function of theatre
For Prof Luwes, theatre is the barometer of a people’s soul. He refers to the therapeutic function of theatre as “the surgeon who reveals and cuts out evil, the court jester who mocks the ridiculous and falsehoods, the comfort of the heart that proves that we are all created with weaknesses, but can also taste the joys of life and the beauty thereof.”  

He summarises it as the thoughts of the man in the street being conceived, experienced, and recreated by theatre artists on behalf of those who are unable to express and realise it themselves.  Prof Luwes’ advice to emerging playwrights is simple: “Write about your experiences and feelings and never try to write like someone else. Trust your intuition and be willing to place your name and thinking on the altar of other people’s opinions in public.” 

The Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns announced its awards on 21 May 2020. The official presentation will take place at a later stage. 

News Archive

Plant-strengthening agent a result of joint effort between UFS and German company
2015-07-27

Research over the past few years has showed that the agent applied mostly as a foliar spray subsequently leads to better seedlings as well as growth and yield enhancement of various crops.

The application of a plant-strengthening agent in the agricultural industry has, until recently, been largely ignored, says Dr Elmarie van der Watt of the Department of Soil, Crop, and Climate Sciences at the University of the Free State (UFS). The agent was co-developed by researchers at the UFS and a German company.

The product is moving into new markets, such as China, Vietnam, the USA, and Australia.

ComCat® was the result of extensive research by the German company Agraforum AG. Commercialisation was limited initially to Europe, while research was expanded to other parts of the world, with the University of the Free State as the main research centre.  ComCat® is a unique, non-toxic plant strengthening agent derived from wild plants. It enhances plant growth and yield, as well as resistance against abiotic and biotic stress factors.

Dr Van der Watt says that, in nature, plants communicate and interact by means of allelochemicals (the inherent silent tool of self-protection among plants) and other phytochemicals (chemical compounds that occur naturally in plants), as part of their resistance mechanisms towards biotic and abiotic stress conditions.

Most wild-plant varieties are usually well-adapted to resist these stress factors. However, monoculture crops have lost this ability to a large extent. “Active compounds contained in extracts from wild plants applied to monoculture crops can potentially supply the signal for the latter to activate their dormant resistance mechanisms.” 

Research over the past few years has showed that the agent applied mostly as a foliar spray subsequently leads to better seedlings as well as growth and yield enhancement of various crops.  A major advantage is that, despite its enhancing effects on root development and yield, it does not induce unwanted early vegetative growth that could jeopardise the final yield, as happened in the past for nitrogen application at an early growth stage. 

Dr Van der Watt says, “Physiological data on the effect of the natural bio-stimulant product on photosynthesis, respiration, and resistance towards biotic stress conditions indicate that it can be regarded as a useful tool to manipulate agricultural crops. Research also showed that the field of application for this natural product is never-ending, and new applications are being investigated every day.”

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