Born in Rustenburg in 1914, Bettie Cilliers-Barnard is renowned for her large canvas paintings depicting birds in flight, strange alien figures, primeval animal forms, arrows and sharp triangular shapes.

She constantly questioned earthly and transcendental thoughts on human existence. Cilliers-Barnard participated in more than 70 solo exhibitions in South Africa, Paris, London and Taiwan and many group exhibitions both at home and abroad.

Her paintings, tapestries and murals are found in public collections, museums and private collections. In 1983 she produced a tapestry Guardian Angel of the Arts for the State Theatre in Pretoria. She died in September 2010.