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31 January 2024
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Story EDZANI NEPHALELA
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Photo ANJA AUCAMP
Dr Martin Laubscher’s thesis, crowned with the Andrew Murray-Desmond Tutu Prize, is testament to the university’s unwavering commitment to scholarly excellence.
In a historic triumph that reverberates over four decades since its inception, the UFS has clinched the coveted
Andrew Murray Prize – now renamed the Andrew Murray-Desmond Tutu Prize – for the first time. Standing shoulder to shoulder with institutions such as the University of Pretoria (UP) and Stellenbosch University (SU), this achievement marks a significant milestone in the UFS’ journey.
At the heart of this accomplishment lies the profound contribution of
Dr Martin Laubscher, distinguished Senior Lecturer specialising in Practical and Missional Theology in the
Faculty of Theology and Religion. Dr Laubscher’s dedication and scholarly prowess culminated in the groundbreaking work titled
Publieke teologie as profetiese teologie? (Public theology as prophetic theology), a revised edition of his doctoral thesis, which was originally crafted at Stellenbosch University in 2020, with a focus on the eminent Karl Barth.
Dr Laubscher received the Andrew Murray Prize for Theological Books in Afrikaans for his research and insightful analysis. The journey started when he realised, under the guidance of his study leader,
Prof Dion Forster, that his script had the potential to be published in Afrikaans. Sun Media’s interest in publishing this work in Afrikaans, led to it being the first-ever published thesis in Afrikaans. Dr Laubscher recalls, “I was grateful and excited about Sun Media’s interest. The book emerged within a year, and during a celebratory launch Prof Forster suggested I submit it for the Andrew Murray Prize.”
Earlier this year, Dr Laubscher was excited to learn that he was being shortlisted for the prestigious award. Reflecting on the significant moment, he shares, “The elation I felt upon receiving the news was unparalleled. I was not only celebrating a personal triumph, but also etching my name as the first laureate from our faculty to secure this prestigious accolade.”
Ancient methods used for new sculpture
2012-05-11
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Angus Taylor sculpture “Van Hier tot Daar”
Photo: Supplied
10 May 2012
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An Angus Taylor sculpture “Van Hier tot Daar” was installed at the Agricultural Building on the Bloemfontein Campus. The sculpture is a three-metre head (14 times larger than life-size) made out of stacked Marico slate. It weighs approximately 15 tons and took two weeks, after months of preparation, to be built on site. The portrait is generic as Taylor has used various people from his studio as reference.
Ms Angela de Jesus, Curator of the Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery on campus, says the process of stacking stone refers to one of the first methods used by humans to create an object or mark a place of significance in three dimensions. The sculpture speaks not only of man’s evolutionary development, but also of how humans are physically and psychologically connected and interdependent on the land. The sculpture that emerges from the ground, although monumental in scale, becomes somewhat of an anti-monument as it is non-representative and it is without a plinth.
The sculpture is the 16th artwork to be installed on the Bloemfontein Campus by the Lotto Sculpture-on-Campus Project funded by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund.