Louis Kok
Louis Kok was born in Pretoria in 1970 and matriculated from Wonderboom Highschool in 1988. Louis has always been creative and showed a passion for drawing and painting from a young age. However, as his school did not offer art as a subject, he took Woodwork which gave him an outlet for his creative drive. The path to creativity was not an easy one as his father, a strong influence in his life, was against the idea of art being a career path for his son. Like so many other young gay men, Louis suppressed his true self to please and protect his relationship with his family. However, he finally came out and this gave him the courage to pursue his passion for art and, surprisingly, found much support from his family.
In 1993 he enrolled for a Fine Art Diploma at the Tshwane University of Technology. On completion of his studies, he chose to open his graphics and multi-media company.
His true passion for fine arts was only realised in 2012 when he made another courageous step and decided to become a full-time artist. Seeking help and advice from various galleries, he quickly became part of the Pretoria art scene, taking part in many group and solo exhibitions.
Louis needs to constantly research and experiment with various mediums and combine these mediums to create interesting layers and contrast through his personal life experiences. In this way, he creates his language in narrative imagery. This idea has followed him throughout his life and the focus has always been on the process or the journey. This translates into his creative pursuits as well. He thrives on the process of creativity and although he always strives for quality finished work, it’s in the technical processes that he finds real joy.