South African artist William Kentridge has opened a new arts foundation in the Arts on Main complex in Maboneng, Johannesburg, in a converted warehouse complex which also houses Kentridge’s studio, The Art Newspaper reports. Named the Centre for the Less Good Idea, the foundation’s aim is to provide a ‘safe space for uncertainty, doubt, stupidity and, at times, failure’. Commenting on how art in South Africa is circumscribed by the demands of funders, especially non-governmental organisations, Kentridge explained that ‘the work that is done is always shaped by the needs of the NGOs and the demands of what has to appear in the proposals of the different organisations, which is not the way a lot of art happens at its best’. The launch of the centre follows the closure of the long-established Johannesburg Art Gallery this February, which drew attention to the dwindling funds available for public art institutions and the general need for alternative art spaces in South Africa.
The centre’s inaugural season took place in March and featured performances, film screenings and exhibitions; the second season promises a strong performative focus, featuring ‘work with electronic engineers and performers and artists’, among others.
18 April 2017
