Artist Database

Perla Siedle Gibson became an internationally beloved figure during the Second World War. Dubbed the ‘Lady in White’, she sang over 5,000 troopships in and out of Durban Harbour while wearing a white dress and red hat. Gibson was born in Durban in 1888 and studied music and art in Europe and the United States. Her waterfront singing career began in April 1940, when she was asked to sing to a departing family friend at Durban Harbour. She sang during the entirety of the war, including seeing off her own husband, daughter, and two sons, and even singing the day she received the telegram bearing the news that her son, Second Lieutenant Clement Roy Gibson, had been killed. Time Magazine ran a piece on her efforts in 1943 and Life magazine featured her in 1944. In addition to her singing career, Gibson was also an artist. She studied painting under Gwelo Goodman and was a member of the South African Society of Artists, with whom she often exhibited. Her legacy and legend are solidified by a bronze plaque erected at the harbour and a statue of her now in the Port Natal Maritime Museum.