Artist Profile

Sane Wadu’s painting career began not on canvas, but on clothing. In 1983, he left his job as a teacher and began to coat pants, shirts and sheets of plastic in designs drawn with watercolor and household paints. His friends and neighbors called him “insane” for giving up a secure career to pursue art, but he would not be deterred. In 1985, he strolled into Gallery Watatu wearing a suit painted vibrantly by his own hand and presented Ruth Shaffner with a portfolio of his work. Wadu’s originality and talent bled through those early pieces and he became a foundational pillar of Gallery Watatu, a position he holds to this day. His artistic success also prompted him to adopt the name “Sane” in defiance of those who had doubted his decision to give himself over to art.

Artists Portfolio

Gallery Watatu Ltd
Standard Street, Lonrho House, Ground Floor
P.O. Box 41855
Nairobi, Kenya.
Tel: +254(0)738501838