This exhibition brings together two of the most prolific and innovative artists of the 20th and 21st centuries: Pablo Picasso and William Kentridge. The exhibition highlights remarkable parallels between the two artists including a prolific practice, multi-disciplinary approach to artmaking, and personas that precede the work. They are also brought together in this exhibition by their extraordinary ability to pivot the medium of linocut through absolute trust in the potential of collaboration and experimentation.
Life in Print: William Kentridge and Pablo Picasso is curated by Bevin Bradley and Michelle Jacques and organized by Remai Modern, thanks to the generous loan of the previously curated exhibition, William Kentridge’s Universal Archive, presented at The Gund at Kenyon College. This loan is also possible thanks to the generosity of David Krut Projects, Johannesburg/New York.
Artists
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)
An astonishingly prolific artist, Picasso was best known for his paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and prints. Picasso carved his own path in artmaking and in life; aware of conventions and at all times eager to challenge them. Whatever the medium, Picasso was sure to invent new ways of using it.
William Kentridge (b.1955)
From drawing to opera, Kentridge’s practice encompasses virtually every aspect of every medium, drawing the viewer in through the materials and confronting them with messaging of colonial devastations and the long-lasting effects of apartheid that plague South Africa. As a South African, Kentridge draws from what he sees every day; mine tailings surrounding Johannesburg, racial and economic disparity and a society that still exists in segregation. Perhaps it is the magnitude and the complexity of the unrest that causes him to seek out multiple mediums to illustrate the message, whilst weaving the beauty of the country and the people through his work.