William Kentridge (1955)
Sleeper
1997 | Etching, aquatint & drypoint from 2 plates | 119 x 215 cm
William Kentridge is a filmmaker, draughtsman, and sculptor. Born white and South African, he has developed a reflection on apartheid and the excesses of power. This print, with its bright red background, is the most surprising in a series devoted to the theme of the sleeper.
Sleeper symbolises a state of blissful insouciance that allows one to ignore the difficulties of the outside world. The artist himself is the model for this naked male figure. It is already present in "Ubu Tells the Truth", a series of prints published in 1997. For Kentridge, Ubu is a metaphor for the senseless policy of apartheid, presented by the state as a rational system.
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