William Kentridge (born Johannesburg, South Africa, 1955) is internationally acclaimed for his drawings, films, theatre and opera productions.
His method combines drawing, writing, film, performance, music, theatre, and collaborative practices to create works of art that are grounded in politics, science, literature and history, whilst yet maintaining a space for contradiction and uncertainty.
His aesthetics are drawn from the medium of film’s own history, from stop-motion animation to early special effects. Kentridge’s drawing, specifically the dynamism of an erased and redrawn mark, is an integral part of his expanded animation and filmmaking practice, where the meanings of his films are developed during the process of their making.
William Kentridge’s works first hit the international spotlight in 1997, when he took part in Documenta X in Kassel. His work has been seen in museums and galleries around the world since that time, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Albertina Museum in Vienna, Musée du Louvre in Paris, Whitechapel Gallery in London, Louisiana Museum in Copenhagen, the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid and the Kunstmuseum in Basel. 2009 marked the beginning of 5 Themes, a major exhibition that opened at SFMoMA in San Francisco and then went on to MoMA in New York, the Jeu de Paume in Paris, and the Albertina in Vienna, among others.
Visit the artist website: https://www.kentridge.studio/
As part of the Festival dei Due Mondi, Fondazione Carla Fendi presents Unhappen Unhappen Unhappen — Pepper’s Ghost Dioramas, a collaborative project developed with Mahler & LeWitt Studios and The Centre for the Less Good Idea. Curated by Guy Robertson, the exhibition features four performance dioramas created using the optical Pepper’s
We are pleased to announce the inauguration of “Pensieri fuggitivi”, an exhibition dedicated to William Kentridge, one of the most influential artists on the international contemporary scene. The exhibition will open at Palazzo Collicolaon June 28, 2025. The exhibition, curated by Saverio Verini in collaboration with the William Kentridge Studio
An exhibition dedicated to the South African artist William Kentridge is announced, opening this summer. It marks the first museum presentation outside South Africa to focus on his sculptural output. The project includes works created between 2007 and 2024. The exhibition will unfold in the Underground Gallery, with outdoor installations
From May 30 to July 13, 2025, MITA – Cultural Center in Brescia presents the exhibition “Geographies of Solitude. The Tapestries of William Kentridge and the Carpets of the Mountains”, curated by Giovanni Valagussa. The exhibition is part of MITA’s ongoing programme dedicated to the dialogue between ancient textile traditions
As part of the Bergen International Festival 2025, William Kentridge will stage two remarkable performances at Grieghallen. On 21 and 22 May, he presents “The Great Yes, The Great No”, a theatrical and musical performance set in 1941 aboard a ship sailing from Marseille to Martinique. The production features actors,
South African artist William Kentridge returns to campus with his latest creation for the stage, a chamber opera set on a 1941 sea voyage from Marseille to Martinique. Conceived in collaboration with theater maker Phala Ookeditse Phala and choral conductor and dancer Nhlanhla Mahlangu, The Great Yes, The Great Nofictionalizes
