About the artist
JEAN THERON LOUW b. 1965
Rising artistic star, Jean Theron Louw was awarded the 2020 kykNET Fiesta Awards together with the
award for the KYKNET Best Presentation in Visual Art prize, for her remarkable MY AFRICAN WILD
DOGS sculpture. The sculpture references overpopulation, ecology, sexual abuse, xenophobia and
the universality of humanity’s exploitation of our planet. Previously in 2019, she won the US
Woordfees Trophy for Visual Arts: Best Presentation – for the same sculpture This piece was also
shown at the Montagu Book Festival where Louw was chosen as the Festival artist.
Most recently, in 2022, she has been working creating a life-size bronze sculpture of The View based
on the stainless steel version which has been on permanent exhibition in Hermanus. This sculpture
THE VIEW was installed at Gearings Point, Hermanus, Western Cape, forming part of the 2020
Fynarts Sculptures on the Cliff Path Exhibition. The sculpture addresses the burning issue of Global
Warming and tries to awaken awareness of humanity’s inter-connectivity with the Planet.
Incorporated into the sculpture are touches of humour, pathos, provocation and empathy.
Exquisitely crafted of teak and stainless steel, the boat supports the figures of Julius and Jane. Julius,
impatient to depart for the unknown, Jane, lethargic and apathetic, lounges behind Julius. A year in
the making, The View demands active, engaged viewing: piled rocks enable the audience to balance
precariously, whilst looking into the viewfinder of Julius’ telescope. There, whilst looking at a ‘selfie’,
the effect of human habitation and its ongoing destruction is listed.
Jean Theron Louw graduated in 1989 with a BArch. from the University of the Free State, South
Africa. As a schoolgirl, her artistic talent had already been recognised, when she won the Sanlam
Africa Art Award in 1983. Theron’s energy, intelligence, inherent talent and drive is evident in the
number of exhibitions in which she has participated, especially in the Western Cape, where she
resides.
Whilst preparing for the construction of a sculpture, Louw prepares drawings to assist in her
conceptual thinking. Louw’s drawings and sculptures are precisely and meticulously conceived,
reflecting her passion towards ‘awareness of the connectivity of man to the planet’. Her fastidious
attention to detail, her imaginative interpretation and the precise execution through technical skill
allows for the creation of unique imagery and objects of great beauty. Linear clarity, a lively sense of
humour and contemporary expression are innate in her artistic production, thus demanding her
audience’s immediate attention. Her work is thought provoking and aesthetically pleasing.
As climatic conditions alter the status quo of life on earth, Louw’s creative output becomes more
relevant and her artistic stature more important.
Louw ‘s work is available at the Hermanus Intethe Gallery and Intethe Gallery at Stanford Valley
Guest Farm.