William Kentridge, one of South Africa's most significant artists, has been creating poignant, clever and visually arresting works across a variety of media for more than five decades. He is renowned for his unique charcoal drawing animations, sculptures, drawings and theatre productions, but what this book focuses...
William Kentridge, one of South Africa's most significant artists, has been creating poignant, clever and visually arresting works across a variety of media for more than five decades. He is renowned for his unique charcoal drawing animations, sculptures, drawings and theatre productions, but what this book focuses on is Kentridge's longstanding relationships with printmaking and poster design. Over the past three years South Aftrican art authority and decidated researcher Warren Siebrits began compiling a five-volume catalogue raisonné of Kentridge's prints and posters. In this first book, focusing on graphics produced between 1974 and 1990, Siebrits presents the artist's earliest forays into linocut, etching and monotype printing, to name but a few. While for many artists printmaking is informed by their work in what have historically been considered more valuable media such as painting and drawing, Siebrits highlights that Kentridge's process has been quite the opposite. This intensive look at Kentridge first and foremost as a printmaker is thus crucial for a comprehensive understanding of his diverse and influential oeuvre. The chronology of the prints and posters helps re-establish many lost and obscure tributaries that will be invaluable to those interested in the building blocks of Kentridge's work.
Born in Johannesburg in 1955, William Kentridge is a prominent contemporary artist. He works in and across the mediums of drawing, writing, film, performance, music and collaborative practices, to create art that is grounded in politics, science, literature and history, while maintaining a space for contradiction and uncertainty. Kentridge's work has been seen in museums, galleries, theatres and opera houses internationally since the 1990s, and is held in many major museums and institutions. He is the recipient of honorary doctorates from several universities including Yale and the University of London; his prizes include the Kyoto Prize (2010), the Princess of Asturias Award (2017) and the Praemium Imperiale Prize (2019).
