Kay GalleryGershwynn Kay · Est. 1972

About the artist

Gershwynn Kay

Born 3 March 1972 · Strand, Western Cape

Draughtsman by trade, painter at heart. Gershwynn Kay paints the animals, seas and landscapes of South Africa and Mozambique in acrylic.

Portrait of the artist Gershwynn Kay, smiling, wearing a black cap and glasses.

I am Gershwynn Leo Kay, the eldest of four siblings and the only left-hander in my family. Drawing has been part of me for as long as I can remember. Though I never thought of myself as an artist, art has always been my refuge: a place of calm and peace beyond words.

Professional background

By trade, I am a draughtsman with more than 15 years of experience in the construction industry. My career has taken me across Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Mozambique. During long assignments away from home, I often drew portraits of colleagues, not for profit but for the joy of the challenge.

Many of the landscapes and scenes I encountered now live on in my paintings: baobabs in Tete, fishing boats in Nacala, and the long drives between Johannesburg and Cape Town.

Rediscovering art

The COVID-19 pandemic brought my construction work to a halt, but it also gave me time to return to painting. In that period, I met Marthie Nel, whose direct encouragement changed my perspective. She reminded me that talent must be shared, that criticism is inevitable, and that it can be transformed into growth. Her belief in me was so strong that she organised a concert to showcase my work, a gesture that reignited my confidence.

First sale

I have always seen art as an emotional release, a way to get away from the negativity of this world. It is my happy place. I never saw myself as a commercial artist.

So I was surprised when, while I was showing off my work on WhatsApp, someone offered to buy one of my paintings. In the buyer’s words: “It was worth every Rand.” Those words validated my journey and marked the beginning of a new chapter.

My work

I paint primarily in acrylic on paper. My subjects are drawn from the places and moments that have stayed with me: wildlife and horses, the sea, and the landscapes of South Africa and Mozambique. Each piece is original, one of a kind, and signed.

Vision

Painting has always been my passion, but now it is my purpose. My family and friends have always believed in me. Today, I choose to believe in myself too.

The G. Kay crest: a navy shield with two fish, a palette, a compass and set square and a drawing hand, beneath a helm and crown, with crossed swords, laurels and a banner reading Est. 1972.

The family crest

Reading the crest

The G. Kay crest packs a whole life into one shield: the dreamer, the painter and the draughtsman.

  1. Two fish. "I'm a Pisces, and very much a dreamer." The fish are his star sign.
  2. Palette and brush. The painter: horses, wildlife, the sea and the landscapes he has travelled through, in acrylic.
  3. Compass and set square. The draughtsman: more than fifteen years of technical drawing on building sites in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Mozambique.
  4. The drawing hand. He has drawn since before he can remember, from portraits of colleagues on site to the caricatures he draws today.
  5. Swords and laurels. Courage and victory. It took both to stop hiding the paintings and show them to the world.
  6. Est. 1972. The year Gershwynn was born, the first of four siblings.

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