Francois Malherbe was born in Kroonstad, Orange Free State, South Africa, in 1954. He moved to the Western Cape with his parents in 1958 where he attended school and university in the campus town Stellenbosch in the heart of the famous Cape winelands.

He was actively involved in a Marketing Management career in the Western Cape, Gauteng and the Free State for over twenty years while sketching in his free time. During these years he became a passionate art lover and collector. After the 1994 democratic election in South Africa and the restructuring and merger of the company he had served for over 17 years, he left the corporate world and moved back to Cape Town to dedicate as much of his time possible to painting.

Francois has participated in numerous group exhibitions since 1996 and has also  had solo  exhibitions. His paintings are strongly influenced by the changes that took place in South Africa since the 1994 elections whereafter he, like so many other South Africans, developed a far deeper awareness of the richness of his African environment and legacy. Inspired by that he has developed a love for all ethnic art forms.

His paintings are naive and simplistic in form. A strong abstract influence is present in most works. The use of earthy colours is striking, highlighted by bright colours depicting the multifaceted ‘Rainbow Nation’. African symbols and tokens are used with spiritual and political undertones. Animals are surrounded by various symbols and are often placed in fantasy settings. Figures are abstract and complemented by ethnic and spiritual motifs.

He works mainly in acrylics occasionally using a combination of oils and acrylics in abstract works. This allows a bolder texture and an “etching” effect for cultural and sexual forms. His work has been inspired by the German Post -Modernistic painter Willi Baumeister’s simplistic use of ethnic forms.

Francois Malherbe’s unique combination of naive style, colours and topic matter has made his paintings sought-after by both local and international clientele. Several commissioned works are found in countries across the world including  Japan, Germany, Holland, France, Switzerland, Sweden, Britain, the USA, Canada, and Australasia.

He is involved in community support activities with his latest contribution being the donation of an acrylic, ‘’Impi II’’, which was auctioned at the prestigious Boschendal Art and Wine auction in September 2002, raising nearly US$1000 for an Aids orphan hospice.

Francois exhibited successfully at Grupo Batik Art in Barcelona, Spain in March 2003 and was invited to participate in the 2003 Biennale Internazionale dell’Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italy.