There are few things finer than wandering into a gallery to see the work of an artist you have never heard of, only to discover he or she is actually one of your favourites! This happened to me at MOMA in New York city last week, and as a result of my conversion I advise you to make William Kentridge your new number one.
His exhibition Five Themes is a brilliant, multimedia swoop through drawing, torn paper, animation, film and theatre design. Taking themes from the history of his native South Africa and mixing them with avant garde film history and Russian literature - this exhibition will appeal to those who like an artist who can really draw/paint and those who seek to be gobsmacked that one person is capable of creating this immense body of work over just 20 years. My favorite section was an auditorium where we sat spellbound as a mechanical theatre starring motorized puppets and an animated rhino performed Mozart's The Magic Flute. I can say no more than that as I would love you to go and see it for yourselves. Magical. I can truly say I have never seen anything like it. The mechanism reminded me of a toy theatre I had as a child.
This week I have been thinking about the marriage of 'art' and music - and how people who are adept at one often are extremely talented at the other. Check out Iannis Xenakis at the Drawing Center in New York for more. Made my head hurt.
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