The world's only painting of sheep called Baanksy is kidnapped from his art studio and his desperate owner offers a huge reward of £ 50,000 to get it back.
Baanksy followed a painting pig called Pigcasso in the footsteps of his predecessor who taught him to use a brush in an animal sanctuary that they shared in South Africa.
Unfortunately, Pigcasso died last year after passing her super skills and her artworks were bought by celebrities such as actor George Clooney and she even had her own wine range.
The unique painting pig also had exhibitions in Cape Town, Munich and Amsterdam and she had a Swatch Watch Design and Nissan instructed to give artwork from her studio.
Baanksy started the brush after viewing Pigcasso in action in the canvas and started copying her and owner Joanne Lefson, 53, and started encouraging him.
Within a year and just before Pigcasso died, both painted photos that were sold all over the world and the funds save the SA from folding.
The Pigcasso paintings collected a total of £ 800,000 with 550 sold all over the world with one who earns a Guinness Book of Records place for the highest price for a painting of animals for £ 20,000.
But Joanne, who runs the farm in Franschoek in the Winelands near Cape Town, was destroyed fourteen days ago when Baanksy did not show up to meet a British customer for a sale.
Joanne Lefson with Baanksy. The world's only painting of sheep has been abducted from his art studio and Joanne offers a huge reward of £ 50,000 to get it back
Joanne said: 'Pigcasso had passed on all her skills to Baanksy before she died and he did 17 paintings that got better and better and sell so well.
'They sold for a maximum of £ 3,500 each time, but earlier this month he was abducted from the farm in the middle of the night from a herd of eight, but he was the only one to be taken.
'I can't believe it was random that Banesky had been taken, but there was a domestic incident on the farm and I called in researchers to see if there is a link to it.
'If resting people break in and he is the only one stolen from their field, it is simply not logical for me and I just pray that he is being held somewhere and is still safe.
'It is impossible to think that the only sheep in the world that is unique was randomly stolen by a stock thief and was slaughtered and cooked on a barbecue.
'I hired two top -private researchers who promise to get the bottom of it and have set up a reward of £ 50,000, but so far we have not been lucky to find our superstar.
'We had a British family who came in for a committee and Baanksy always makes his own way to the studio to paint every day, but when he did not appear, we were looking for him.
BaanKSY with the help of a paint brush on a work of art. Joanne who runs the farm in Franschoek in the Winelands near Cape Town, was destroyed fourteen days ago when Baanksy did not show up to meet a British customer for a sale
“But there was no sign of him anywhere and he had just disappeared at night.
'Baanksy started making paintings that were good enough to sell from November and has done 17 so far and he has had buyers from the UK and America and from Germany.
“He was saved in 2022 from a road like a vulnerable lamb and was brought to us and became friends with Pigcasso who was a rescue in 2016 and was kept in her studio.
“He saw one of Pigcasso's brush brushes lying in the stall and Baanksy had clearly monitored and picked up and started to do the same brush movements as she was.
'So I led him to the canvas and put the brushes in the various colored paint and to my total shock he started painting for himself, although not great in the beginning.
'Pigcasso unfortunately died, which was devastating and we had messages from sympathy of collectors all over the world, especially England and Germany who rose.
'But we made it clear that Pigcasso had left a protégé and to give him time to learn, then we would have the world's first painting of sheep and he now produced great paintings.
'Baanksy is the only sheep in the world that can pick up a brush and paint and it makes me sick to my stomach that someone could have deliberately taken him.
'He is recognizable by the paint on his hooves and nobody gets the reward when they bring back a lookalike sheep, unless I take him to a canvas and he starts painting.
'BaanKSY is part of my extensive family and I paint with him every day and his loss is when losing a dog and I am sure he will be kept somewhere and just wants him with us.
Pigcasso died last year after passing her super skills and her artworks were bought by celebrities such as actor George Clooney and she even had her own wine range
'It is devastating to think that the only sheep in the world to paint may have been killed and eaten, because he is completely unique and a sweet boy and I cannot believe he happened to have gone.
'We have cows, goats, chicken, ducks, chickens, sheep and donkeys and in the 8 years that we have been to here, Baanky is the only one stolen, so that's just too fishing for me.
'The paintings of Pigcasso that were sold saved us sanctuary and paid that role for all the staff and all vets for all animals and Baanksy.
“I just beg anyone who knows something to contact the police and to help us find him,” she said.
Western spokesperson for the West -Cape Police Sergeant Wesley Twigg said that a theft of the theft has been registered and that Baanky is supposed to have been taken on 2 February.
He said: “Investigations are going on, but no arrests have been made yet.”
Baanksy was saved by the Karoo desert from a desert of the Karoo in 2022 and brought to the agricultural reserve Sa like a lamb and a pen in with her upcoming mentor-pigcasso.
Pigcasso became known worldwide and her artworks sold in Bonhams of London and she and has her own page on Wikpedia and actor George Clooney is a big fan.
Joanne said: “I know that people can help there and it is a life -changing reward, so contact the farm or the police and bring Baanksy back so that he can paint again.”
All staff on the farm is performed today by research tests of lie detectort tests.
