“I’m interested in machines that make you aware of the process of seeing and aware of what you do when you construct the world by looking.”
—William KentridgeWilliam Kentridge’s 2001 Medusa presents a circular lithograph upon which a distorted image twists and warps, only intelligible when viewed at certain vantagepoints in the cylindrical mirror that sits atop it. The lithograph is a monochromatic depiction of the gorgon Medusa, with the sinuous delineation curving around the mirror adding to her snake-like charm. Kentridge imaginatively harnesses catoptric anamorphosis: a playful optical technique developed in Ming Dynasty China, popular in Renaissance Europe and, more recently, used in modern cinematography to shoot widescreen pictures. On paper, however, the result is a disfigured image that deliberately toys with perception, forcing the viewer to adopt the central cylindrical mirror as an observational device.
Satyrs around an anamorphosis of an elephant, Hans Troschel, after Simon Vouet, 1600 – 1628, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Image: Rijksmuseum, RP-P-OB-54.896 Medusa connects past and present through both subject and process. Like Perseus – who cunningly circumvented petrification by using the reflective qualities of his mirror-shield – Kentridge inserts himself into the mythological narrative by adopting the mirror to complete the practice. Indeed, the artist used the mirror as a metaphorical eye while drawing; he did not look at the paper, instead moving the charcoal across the page by looking only at its reflection. In this way, Kentridge engages with the classical tale not only through the resulting object but through the process of its creation.
Medusa was exhibited in 2019 at MIRRORS – The Reflected Self in Zurich, an exhibition that took a global approach to the cultural history of the mirror, spanning millennia and civilization from ancient Mesopotamia to modern day Venice. Interwoven into the exhibition were objects depicting other classical tales such as Narcissus, as well as Renaissance astrological notions of the sun and moon imagined as mirrors to each other. Interrogating themes such as self-awareness, vanity, wisdom and woe, Kentridge’s cunning contribution subverts the mirror’s traditional affirming function by offering it instead as a deadly weapon. Medusa therefore departs from earlier conventional depictions of the familiar subject, revivifying old myth with a distinctly modern twist.
Literature
David Krut, William Kentridge Prints, 2006, p. 116
356
Medusa (Parkett 63)
2001
Anamorphic lithograph in colours, with Chine-collé consisting of six pages from from the 1906 French Larousse Encyclopedia to BFK Rives paper, the full sheet, with mirror-finish steel cylinder, accompanied by a custom-made black painted wooden table with glass table top.
S. 76.2 x 75.7 cm (30 x 29 3/4 in.)
steel cylinder 13 x 9 x 9 cm (5 1/8 x 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 in.)
Signed and numbered 56/60 in pencil (there were also 20 artist's proofs in Roman numerals), published by Parkett Editions, New York and Zurich, to coincide with the publication of Parkett Vol. 63.
Estimate
£2,000 - 3,000 ♠
Sold for £2,540
Enquiries:
EditionsLondon@phillips.com
+44 20 7318 4024
Rebecca Tooby-Desmond
Specialist, Head of Sale, Editions
rtooby-desmond@phillips.com
Robert Kennan
Head of Editions, Europe
rkennan@phillips.com
Anne Schneider-Wilson
Senior International Specialist, Editions
aschneider-wilson@phillips.com
Louisa Earl
Associate Specialist, Editions
learl@phillips.com
Evening & Day Editions
London Auction 19 - 20 September 2024
407
This lot is no longer available.
