The Inamori Foundation, of Kyoto, Japan, recently announced that Mr. William Kentridge will receive its 26th annual Kyoto Prize in Arts and Philosophy, which focuses on the field of Arts. Mr. Kentridge, 55, will receive the award for his originality as a visual artist whose wide-ranging activities encompass animation, stage direction and writing.

(left) A hand-drawn still from a Kentridge animation (1998-99).  Kentridge’s drawings and stop-motion videos often have a subtle but reflectively political undertone, investigating the cultural dualities of South Africa and the artist’s birth city of Johannesburg. Fine Arts Magazine

 William Kentridge is an active visual artist born and based in Johannesburg, South Africa, whose wide-ranging activities encompass stage direction and writing. After studying political science at university, he became involved in theater and film production. In the late 1980s, while he was in his late 30s, he began creating his signature animated films called “drawings in motion.” These animated works reflect the history and social circumstances of South Africa, where he continues to live and work. While characterizing his career as a series of failures, he remarked that there remained a strong determination to create something and express himself in some way. He finally found joy in the creation of a simple monotone world woven into drawings made with single colors.

One of his early creations, a series of films featuring the character Soho Eckstein, relates the history of his home country with the pains it inflicted. This series drew worldwide attention as an artistic expression resonating with postcolonial criticism upon showings at the 1995 Johannesburg Biennale and the 1997 Documenta X. In 2009, Mr. Kentridge was selected for the “Time 100,” Time magazine’s annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people.

Using a simple technique that he himself calls “stone-age filmmaking” — namely, the laborious process of filming, frame by frame, a series of ceaselessly changing charcoal and pastel drawings — Mr. Kentridge has injected the traditional technique of drawing into diverse media, including animation, video projection and stage set design. Thus, he has created a new contemporary vehicle of artistic expression within which various media fuse together in multiple ways. His works deal with the history and social circumstances of a specific geographic area, but have acquired universality in the fact that, through his deep insight and profound reflection on the nature of human existence, they afford opportunities to consider the fundamental issues that could face any individual in the world.

Underlying his works and activities is a determination to examine the universal issues confronting modern people. He accomplishes this by traveling back through the history of visual expression, persistently questioning such issues as the ways in which people may build a relationship with the world, the ambiguities of goodwill and oppression, and the conflicting and ambivalent disposition of the individual. While remaining in the remote country of South Africa, Mr. Kentridge continues to make a great impact on contemporary art in Western society. His world, full of sharp intelligence and profound poetry, exerts great influence on other artists — and provides individuals worldwide with courage and hope that their attempts and practices may still be effective and fundamental even amid the stagnation of our contemporary society, swirling with political and social unrest.

“How do we make sense of the world?” Raising this question through his art, Mr. Kentridge wants his works to convey the idea that anyone has the power to actively reconstruct a way to see the world. In expressing his delight with his selection for this honor, he commented: “I am particularly happy that activities of artistic expression and thought are placed under the single category of Arts and Philosophy in the Kyoto Prize.”

He currently has a traveling retrospective titled “Five Themes,” which features his charcoal drawings and animated projections. The exhibit will be on view next at the Jeu de Paume in Paris from June 29 to September 5. There is also another original Kentridge exhibit—a selection of charcoal drawings from the collection of Brenda Potter— at the Taylor Museum / Colorado Springs Fine Arts from July 24 – Oct. 24, 2010.

 

About the Inamori Foundation and the Kyoto Prize

The non-profit Inamori Foundation was established in 1984 by Dr. Kazuo Inamori, founder and chairman emeritus of Kyocera and KDDI Corporation. The Kyoto Prize was founded in 1985, in line with Dr. Inamori’s belief that a human being has no higher calling than to strive for the greater good of society, and that the future of humanity can be assured only when there is a balance between our scientific progress and our spiritual depth. An emblematic feature of the Kyoto Prize is that it is presented not only in recognition of outstanding achievements, but also in honor of the excellent personal characteristics that have shaped those achievements. The laureates are selected through a strict and impartial process considering candidates recommended from around the world. As of the 25th Kyoto Prize ceremony (November 10, 2009), the Kyoto Prize has been awarded to 81 individuals and one foundation — collectively representing 13 nations. Individual laureates range from scientists, engineers and researchers to philosophers, painters, architects, sculptors, musicians and film directors. The United States has produced the most recipients (33), followed by Japan (13), the United Kingdom (12), and France (8).