William Kentridge

William Kentridge (b. 1995, Johannesburg) is a multidisciplinary artist known for his work in print-making, animation, theatre, and opera. His art blends traditional and modern techniques, exploring themes of historical trauma, social justice, and the legacies of apartheid and colonialism in South Africa. Working mainly in charcoal and ink, his animated films are created through drawing, erasure, and reworking, giving his work a haunting, layered quality.

Kentridge's pieces often intertwine various media, with film, print, and theatre projects influencing one another in a seamless narrative flow. This approach is exemplified in the The Nose series, which draws inspiration from his adaptation of Shostakovich’s opera for the Metropolitan Opera, New York, and carries traces of The Magic Flute and other past projects.

His film series 9 Drawings for Projection (1989-2003), set against Johannesburg's industrial landscapes, established Kentridge as a master of politically charged, autobiographical storytelling through expression gesture and rich symbolism.