William Kentridge and Lapis Blue

Hyperallergic highlighted a new book drawn from South African artist William Kentridge’s 2024 Oxford lecture, in which he describes his studio as a “safe space for stupidity” and discusses creativity through materials such as lapis lazuli pigment from Afghanistan. In an excerpt titled “A Natural History of William Kentridge’s Studio,” Kentridge contrasts lapis lazuli’s intense blue—historically used sparingly in Renaissance painting—with modern French ultramarine and notes that the color loses power in projection, photography, and printing. The piece also points readers to additional Hyperallergic coverage, including a guide to Upstate Art Weekend and reporting on US political involvement in the Venice Architecture Biennale. Separately, the roundup mentions the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans, including a $90,000 graduate fellowship supporting immigrants and children of immigrants in visual-arts graduate programs.

Read the full article at Hyperallergic