Artist: William Kentridge (South African, b. 1955) Title: Dancing Couple Audio: Date: 2003 Dimensions: 73″ x 51″ Location in Library: First floor Media: Offset lithograph, works on paper Owner: The Brooklyn College Library Collection. Purchased with Dormitory Authority of New York Art Acquisition Funds. © William Kentridge Description: In Dancing Couple, Kentridge aims to “depict the futile battles against entropy . . . representing bodies aging rather than bodies triumphant.” And indeed, his depiction of a middle-aged couple clearly conveys both their age and the age of their relationship. Their age is evident in their thickened bodies and their heavy steps, which have lost the nimbleness of youth. The age of their relationship is conveyed more subtly: the two are so accustomed to each other’s bodies that, even though they are nude, they don’t seem to notice each other’s nakedness. As a result, viewers don’t immediately notice it, either. Related Websites– William Kentridge at MoMA– William Kentridge at New Museum– “Why the Art World Is So Drawn to William Kentridge” from New York Magazine –William Kentridge’s Charcoal Drawings Animate Africa’s History of Colonial Resistance
William Kentridge
Artist: William Kentridge (South African, b. 1955) Title: Typewriter Audio: Date: 2003 Dimensions: 30 1/2″ x 36 11/16″ Location in Library: First floor Media: Sugarlift aquatint, works on paper Owner: The Brooklyn College Library Collection. Purchased with The Dormitory Authority of New York Art Acquisition Funds. © William Kentridge Description: The typewriter in this print is full of quirky character; the old-fashioned keys, typebars, and levers twitch with motion and life, even in the absence of a typist. William Kentridge infuses many of his works with this kind of vitality, and he often combines them to make stop-motion animations, or “drawings for projection.” Though the resulting films are sequences of still images, they burst with energy, especially when he is addressing politically charged subjects such as apartheid. Related Websites– William Kentridge at MoMA– William Kentridge at New Museum– “Why the Art World Is So Drawn to William Kentridge” from New York Magazine –William Kentridge’s Charcoal Drawings Animate Africa’s History of Colonial Resistance
