Why Sheep?

A few years ago Ann decided to explore further an idea she had had previously, when she painted her first sheep, entitled “The Sheep who Studied Astrology.” Moving away from her brightly coloured still lives and landscapes, she came up with two sheep that were a different version of the first concept. They were immediately accepted by a large gallery. Inspired to create seven more, five of these had sold within four days. From there Ann has rocketed into the local and international art world that has seen her invited to the Florence Biennale later this year, export to New Zealand, decorate an entire Irish hotel, as well as take on numerous commissions for top companies and with well over 1000 sales in one year, become one of South Africa’s top selling artists. The book of her paintings, Life with Ewe, has recently been accepted by a top UK agency and a revamped version, will no doubt soon be distributed internationally.

The most common question Ann is asked is: “Why sheep?” “Sheep in their inane conformist lifestyle have much to mirror to us about the human condition. Eat, sleep, toil and die for a purpose that remains beyond their deeper understanding. Like sheep we seldom stop to question our life, its purpose and the validity of what we do. Struggling to achieve a stable patch for ourselves and yet being ever threatened by the inevitable tumble downhill, in the repetitive conformism of our lives, sheep become icons for our own insanity.” Through Ewe, Ann examines the life of you the observer, and hopes, through humour, to get ewe/you the viewer, to question why you do what you do and push you to challenge your beliefs and understanding of reality.

Ann constantly explores new ways and dynamics in painting. Her quirky, humorous, yet profound insightful art, asks questions that provoke the viewer to seek answers to. She has written ten books, five of which have been published in the UK for worldwide distribution and translated across 14 different languages. Ann has an exceptionally rich spectrum of professional and personal experience, abilities and talents to draw from. Her overall expression is one of change through consciousness and creation. Having spent nearly two decades as a Commercial Artist, Ann began to indulge her passion for painting more seriously in 1997 since which time she has been a full time artist, work shop presenter and writer. She has participated in a large number of group and solo exhibitions both locally and abroad and her paintings and constructions now hang both internationally and locally. With sales in excess of 800 paintings per year, Ann is now South Africa\'s best-selling female artist. 226 Of her works hang in the Absolute Hotel in Lemerick Ireland, while she has done a number of other commissions for large corporate organisations.

Personal Motivation: " I believe we start by learning to express ourselves creatively in the physical form. If we pursue this passion with courage, diligence and discipline, we come to the realization that we are the canvas and as such, are both the creator and the creation. Creativity then becomes who we are, not just what we hang on the wall." Ann Gadd

The work itself is fresh, funny, funky and unique. A vibrant and prolific artist and author.