Internationally acclaimed South African artist William Kentridge is celebrated in this book for his expressionist work across various mediums, including charcoal, printmaking, sculpture, and film, along with his renowned theatrical and operatic productions. Kentridge’s art, rich in allusion and complexity, is deeply influenced by apartheid, post-apartheid politics, and draws from science, literature, and history, all while embracing contradiction and ambiguity.

This book by Stephen Clingman features early drawings and etchings from Ubu Tells the Truth, stills from Johannesburg, 2nd Greatest City after Paris and other films, six tapestry pieces, and various drawing series, including Kentridge’s tree studies. It also includes a model theatre and more. Accompanying these works are six thematic reflections by Stephen Clingman: Drawn through Time, The Enigmas of Soho, Shadows of the Past, Shadows of the Present, Dualities, or How I Did Not Become, Timespaces, or Two Dancers, and Coda: Vanishings. These meditations weave together thought-collages, allusions, and assemblages, mirroring Kentridge’s distinctive creative process.