Exhibition- Thick Time by William Kentridge (Whitechapel Gallery)

For a while I had admired the work of Kentridge, seen his video’s on a small computer screen, flicked through his books enamoured by the sheer creativity of his work and the deep conceptual ideas embedded into each frame. However nothing could prepare me for the exhilarating experience of seeing his work first hand. Waiting in the que, excited to enter the exhibition space, I could hear the low thumping on brass instruments in the background. This hypnotic melody got louder and louder as I pushed open the heavy doors, becoming enveloped in sound, the light from the projections transferring me to a new world. I was surrounded by movement, light that danced across my entire body. I had never felt so involved in someone else’s artwork.

Accompanying the throbbing, encompassing music was a wooden machine, the struts and beams seemed to take on a life of their own. As I slowly strolled around the first room, projections hitting me from every wall, I studied it in complete awe, unable to understand the workings of this sculptural piece. That was probably my favourite part of this exhibition, how from room to room I was in a complete state of I was shocked and surprised by the weird and wonderful creations of Kentridge. It could be argued that a lot of the core work he presented was quite similar, however the way each piece was presented continued time and time again to challenge me as a viewer, even on my second and third viewing of the exhibition.

Bibliography-

Blazwick, I. and Breitwieser, S., 2016. William Kentridge : Thick time. London: Whitechapel Gallery.