Ada-Ruth Kellow

Ada-Ruth Kellow (b. 1957, Bremen, Germany) is a figurative painter residing and working in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Her subject matter lies in the uncomfortable, the unspeakable. She shares Susan Sonntag’s view that “we can’t be haunted enough”. Kellow continues the tradition of social critique painting, exemplified by the work of artists such as Goya, Gericault, Munch and Golub. In her work of realistic rendering, she uses metaphors and symbols, allowing the brush to rest in ornamental patterns which she sees as a form of consolation. The painter invites the viewer to follow traces to understand the narrative unfolding. Within the radical process of confrontation and consolation, she adds comical moments, like throwing a bone to the growling dog who wants to be teased only to a certain extent.

After obtaining her BA in Fine Arts from the University of Witswatersrand she went on to complete her BA Honours, graduating with distinction in 2022. Kellow has taken classes in painting (Hermann Niebuhr Studio, Johannesburg, 2017-2020) and life drawing (Freie Kunstakademie Frankfurt, Germany, 2019) and attended the Pentiment International Summer Academy for Art & Design in Hamburg, Germany (1990).

Kellow has participated in several group shows in South Africa, and in 2022 a solo exhibition of her work was presented by Gordart Gallery in Johannesburg. In 2024 she was amongst the top 40 Finalists for the Rust-en-Vrede Portrait Award and attended the Blue Cactus Art Residency in Barcelona, Spain.