From the ‘Thick Time’ exhibition the piece that grabbed my attention the most was Kentridge’s piece based on his production ‘Lulu’. After experiencing ‘The Refusal in Time’ I walked up a set of stairs, pushed open the door in front of me and saw a small stage, surrounded by a sea of chairs. Coming from the grand, overwhelming scale of ‘Refusal in Time’ to this piece could almost seem disappointing, however it grabbed me instantly. The stage was illuminated by a projected image, with the artwork shown in typical Kentridge style, rough ink drawings. In front was a machine, with 2 pieces of wood dangling from string. And to my amazement as the video started these pieces began to dance along the stage, the once stagnant images coming to life. These completely inanimate objects had suddenly became characters from the play, able to portray a whole range of emotions.

Seeing this piece ‘in the flesh’ for the first time truly gave me an experience I doubt very much I could get from a picture in a book or a video on my computer. Even though drawn images it truly felt like the play was happening in front of my eyes, with the all the drama of the real thing. As I was surrounded by people all sat together to watch it it further heightened my experience as I could imagine sitting in a theatre, everyone around me experiencing the same feeling of awe that such emotion could be portrayed from two mobile pieces of wood.

Bibliography-

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