31st Oct, 2016 20:00
Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art
58
William Kentridge (South Africa 1955-)
Untitled (Colonial Landscape)
charcoal and pastel
Artwork date: 1996
Signature details: signed and dated
Sold for R2,046,240
Estimated at R1,800,000 - R2,400,000
charcoal and pastel
Artwork date: 1996
Signature details: signed and dated
(1)
56.5 x 75.5 cm
Notes:
Kentridge’s landscape works are uniquely his own – in many ways they are the central visual motif of his entire oeuvre. While many commentators have remarked on his clear visual and ironic references to monumentalist landscape artists of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Kentridge’s landscapes are much more obviously contested and mutable terrains.
This is a particularly fine example, relatively early on in his career, of a drawing of a landscape under what we might call ‘historical erasure’. In the contemporary animated films, the characteristic South African landscapes, far from being monumental, are turned into another ever-changing character in the cinematic narrative.
With this standalone large landscape drawing, typically with a very specific palimpsest – the ‘civil engineer’s marks’ – Kentridge allows us a view of a particular visual and political moment. In this case, it is the idea that even such a solid, immovable part of the natural world as this waterfall, with its heavy black rocks resisting the unceasing flow of water, is destined for human interference and erasure.
Though less readily identifiable as a specific place than many of his other landscapes, the drawing is beautifully elegiac. Its mid-range perspective and the striking central feature of the rocks suspended almost magically in the midst of the foaming white water attract the eye. But these features are then circumscribed by the red score which lets the viewer understand this is a drawing of a landscape about which plans are being made out in the world. Allegorical and subtle, the work is a particularly strong instance of Kentridge’s landscape drawing.
James Sey
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Auction: Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art, 31st Oct, 2016
The line-up for our inaugural sale included an extraordinary selection of art. Works ranged from JH Pierneef’s breathtaking Karoo near Hofmeyer, painted in 1930, to Dan Halter’s 2006, ultraviolet light, Pefection.
Sculptures varied from Edoardo Villa’s acknowledgment of French artist, Aristide Maillol to Wim Botha’s heads that draw on classical and contemporary sources and Ed Young’s cheeky nude self-portrait. Also included were impressive photographs by award-winners, David Goldblatt and Pieter Hugo.
The auction set an impressive standard, with an outstanding sell-through rate of over 75% across 121 lots. The top lot of the sale was Alexis Preller’s exceptional Profile Figures (Mirrored Image), selling for over R7-million. Record sales were achieved for Villa, Goldblatt, and Hugo, amongst others.
Viewing
Friday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Saturday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Sunday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 4 pm
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