Leon Botha is one of the most famous and long-lived Progeria sufferers, a South African musician, photographer, designer and artist who lived to be 26 years old.
Progeria is a premature aging syndrome, a rare genetic defect. There are about 350 cases of progeria recorded on the planet, and usually patients do not live up to 20 years. Leon Botha lived for 26 years and left behind the world wonderful paintings and wonderful music.
Biography
Leon was born in Cape Town in the summer of 1985. At the age of four, the son of the spouses Botha was diagnosed with a terrible diagnosis: Progeria. Parents did everything possible to make life easier for their baby, they fought with many diseases and deviations caused by Progeria.
While receiving the usual school education for all children, Leon discovered a desire for creativity and spent two years studying painting and jewelry design at the Tigerberg Center for the Arts. After leaving school, he began working as a private artist, performing commissioned works.
In 2005, Leon underwent complicated heart bypass surgery to prevent a heart attack due to atherosclerosis caused by Progeria. At the same time, he became seriously interested in folk music and its modern version - hip-hop.
Creative career
In early 2007, Durbanville hosted the first exhibition of Leon Botha's artwork dedicated to hip-hop culture and organized by the famous South African Mister Fat (stage name Ashley Titus), rapper and public figure. Unfortunately, Fat passed away that same year, but attention was secured to the young talent with an unusual appearance.
The second solo exhibition of the artist opened in 2009. In addition to the fine arts, Botha was engaged in photography and DJing, worked closely with the famous South African music team Die Antwoord, starred in their videos, wrote his own tracks.
And in 2010, Leon held a photo exhibition entitled "Who am I?" In a variety of portraits of himself, he tried to show people that a person, first of all, is a spiritual being, and the shape of the body is only a temporary state that has nothing to do with the personality, which can be very deep, despite all the external flaws. And the artist succeeded - the whole world started talking about him.
In addition, it was the plight of a gifted young man with a strange appearance and his amazing paintings that inspired the famous Polish composer Marcin Stanczyk to create the one-act opera Solarize.
Last years and death
Leon Botha by his 25 years has become a fairly popular person. They talked about him, they offered him help, his paintings and music were in great demand. Leon's personal life was full of communication and creativity. But by the end of 2010, he suffered a stroke and could no longer practice his favorite art. Despite all the efforts of a loving family, Botha died a day after he turned 26 - in the summer of 2011, having lived a short but bright and eventful life, giving the world the disturbing and unusual beauty of his paintings.
