William Kentridge (b. 1955, Johannesburg)

Act IV, scene 7 from Ubu Tells the Truth

1996-97, aquatint, dry point and etching on soft ground, 25 x 30 cm, sheet 36 x 50cm.

Photo by William Kentridge Studio. Courtesy of the artist and William Kentridge Studio ©William Kentridge.

This is one of eight etchings based on a theatre production called Ubu & The Truth Commission made by Kentridge’s studio in collaboration with the Handspring Puppet Company.  The production drew parallels between the hearings of the Commission and Ubu Roi, from a late 19th century French play which caused an uproar and shaped later artistic movements such as Surrealism.  These etchings focus on the character of Ubu Roi, an absurd tyrant, who Kentridge portrays as a split personality:  one side of him is a greedy, gluttonous king, whose cartoonish outline is outlined by the artist in white chalk; the other side is depicted as a naked male modelled on Kentridge himself, perhaps representing his own alter-ego. Each of the etchings contrasts one of the episodes of Ubu’s ridiculous progress with the actions of the alter-ego figure as he tries to distance himself.  Here, the terrified Ubu is being chased by a barking dog while the “artist” – who now appears in duplicate – cycles away in the opposite direction.