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The exhibition "William Kentridge", already conceived two years ago, was planned to be shown last year at the Neue Galerie Graz, but was not possible due to the delay in renovation work at the Neue Galerie. The works of William Kentridge were first shown in Austria in 1996 at "Inclusion:Exclusion", curated by Peter Weibel, during the avantgarde festival steirischer herbst. Kentridge has featured at numerous major exhibitions in recent years, the biennales of Sydney, Johannesburg, Istanbul and Havana, at documenta X, Kassel 1997, the biennale of Sao Paolo in 1998 and the biennale of Venice in 1999.
The current exhibition is the first major retrospective of this South African artist (born 1955 in Johannesburg) and provides a comprehensive synopsis of his œuvre from the early animation films from the "Drawings for Projection - Johannesburg, 2nd Greatest City after Paris" series (1989) to "Weighing... and Wanting" (1998). With the aid of wall paintings created especially for each venue as a separate installation, film and laser projections, and a presentation of drawings that are used in a wide variety of ways in his film and theatre projects, the exhibition highlights the artist's specific mode of work, whose art is influenced by the history of his country and the confrontation with apartheid.
After guesting at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, the Kunstverein Munich, the Serpentine Gallery in London, the MACBA in Barcelona, and La Vieille Charité in Marseille the Neue Galerie Graz is now opening its renovated first-floor rooms with this international star of the art world who also featured in a personal exhibition at the Project Room of the MoMA in New York in 1999.
In cooperation with Palais des Beaux-Arts, Bruxelles and Kunstverein Munich
Catalogue:
William Kentridge, Societé des Expositions du Palais des Beaux-Arts de Bruxelles (ed.), texts by Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, 192 p., engl., ISBN 90-74816-09-6.
Biography
William Kentridge was born in Johannesburg in April 1955, where he continues to live today. In 1976 he graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand with majors in Politics and African Studies. From 1976 to 1978 he was a student at the Johannesburg Art Foundation, where he taught etching for two years thereafter. During 1981 and 1982 he studied mime and theatre at the École Jacques Lecoq in Paris. Kentridge has worked extensively in theatre as an actor, designer, and director, and was a founding member of the Junction Avenue Theatre Company. In 1989 Kentridge created his first animated film in the Soho Eckstein, Felix Teitlebaum series, titled "Johannesburg 2nd Greatest City After Paris". In 1992 he staged his first theatre project in conjunction with Handspring Puppet Company, "Woyzeck on the Highveld".
Note: William Kentridge's work has been divided into the categories of solo and group exhibitions, theatre and film. Listings under 'film' refer only to the process of making animated films - films are frequently included in exhibitions, and have been screened at numerous film festivals not mentioned here. Theatre and multi-media, live events appear under 'theatre', which also includes animation created as part of theatre productions.
