Works by South African artist William Kentridge, go on show in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, Aug. 23, 2019. Kentridge's work of evocative videos, graphic tapestries, charcoal drawings, woodcut prints, sculptures and immersive sound installations combine in his largest single show in which he explores compelling themes including the country's apartheid history and the participation of Africans in World War.
“Why Should I Hesitate: Four Decades of Art Making 1975-2019,” opening Sunday and running through March, draws its title from the words of an African conscripted to fight in the First World War, who was faced with a difficult choice: risk death in the war or refuse to serve and face persecution by the colonial regime.
The show starts with Kentridge’s early charcoal drawings from the 1970s and moves to his etchings, large graphics and videos, evoking the tensions of South Africa’s violent struggle against apartheid, the system of racial discrimination that ended in 1994. “South Africa has changed enormously. I was a student in 1976 when there was the Soweto students’ uprising and then a young artist when the country was in a state of emergency. I had 30 years of life under apartheid and now nearly 30 years after apartheid,” said Kentridge, 64. “South Africa has changed enormously and yet South African has changed hardly at all. Many aspects of daily life here are still the same.
Biggest South African artist William Kentridge show explores South African history. 🎨🎭