William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible

Double Peabody, All the Way

The Art21 office is still bursting with excitement from the announcement of the 70th Annual Peabody Award recipients, where we were awarded our second ever Peabody.

We, of course, have our loyal viewers to thank for helping us reach this remarkable achievement. To celebrate, we want to give away “Art21 Double Peabody” packs to a few lucky viewers, containing DVDs of both of our Peabody Award-winning films: Season 4 of Art in the Twenty-First Century (2007) and William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible (2010).

The drawing is closed. Thanks to all who participated! ~~There are 4 ways to enter the drawing:~~

1. Enter your email address using the form below
Note: Unless you opt in to the Art21 News email newsletter, we will only use your email address to notify winners

~~2. Leave a comment on this post~~

~~3. Leave a comment on and/or “Like” our Facebook “Double Peabody” note~~

~~4. Send out a tweet via Twitter containing the hashtag #art21peabody~~

~~Join the contest by using any or all of the above!~~

~~Winners from Twitter and Facebook will be selected at random on April 11, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. ET.~~ ~~All other winners will be selected at random on April 29, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. ET.~~

Thank you all for supporting Art21 over the years, and we look forward to sharing even more films in the coming years!

ENTER THE DRAWING BELOW

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Art21 is honored to be among the recipients of the 70th Annual Peabody Awards—the premiere international prize in electronic media—for its film, William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible.

The Peabody board recognized William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible as “a veritable all-access pass to [William Kentridge's] mind and work process” given to Art21 by an artist whom they describe as “creativity personified” and “a one-man seminar.”

“The Peabody Awards were established with deep respect for the critical role played by electronic media in contemporary society and culture,” said Horace Newcomb, director of the Peabody Awards. “The annual announcement of the recipients continues in that spirit to recognize work that sets the highest standards for the media industries.”

Visit the Peabody Awards site for the full list of this year’s recipients.

This is the second Peabody award for Art21. The non-profit organization received its first Peabody award for the fourth season (2007) of the biennial PBS television series, Art in the Twenty-First Century. To date, Art21 has produced five seasons of the Art in the Twenty-First Century series, featuring 86 artists in total. Art21 is currently in production for the sixth season of the series, tentatively scheduled to premiere in Spring 2012.

William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible is currently available for purchase on DVD through ShopPBS and other retailers. The film is also available to watch instantly through your browser at PBS Video and on the film site, as well as through the PBS Mobile app available for iOS-powered devices.

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Support Art21

The William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible BACK TO SCHOOL campaign is dedicated to raising awareness and funds for Art21’s free education programs and resources accompanying William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible. Throughout November, Art21 will be reaching out to its online audiences to help the organization reach its goal of raising $2,500. Your donation, in any amount, makes a difference!

A $25 donation will help us send DVDs to teachers across the U.S. Through a donation of $15, you can support additional screening programs. Give $5 and become a patron of educational resources like those introduced below. By giving today your funds will go directly to the kinds of programs you value. Please join us in giving more to educators: donate now!

New Kentridge Resources for Educators
With the release of our new film, William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible, those of us involved in developing the educational resources presented in tandem with our films suddenly had a new kind of resource with which to work. This hour-long study of Kentridge’s work provided an opportunity to delve deeper into the motivations, intentions, considerations, and machinations of an artist working in many media, with many collaborators, and on a wide range of visual and performance-based projects. We spent some time thinking about the most suggestive and useful ways to inspire teachers to use the film.

In addition to producing the Educators’ Guide and Screening Companion that looks at the 10 individual chapters of the film as unique opportunities for dialogue and exploration, we wanted to utilize the amazing collection of related media being presented on the companion website. We wanted to capitalize on the unique opportunity to connect video, images, and quotes with compelling questions and projects that would help teachers explore some of the themes that are central to Kentridge’s work with students.

Learn more about the new Kentridge resources for educators

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We have a special treat for anyone that was unable to catch last week’s broadcast of William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible. The full program is now available for immediate online viewing by way of the PBS Video portal. Whether you’re watching it for the first time, watching it again at your convenience, or using it in a classroom setting, we are pleased to make the entire program available for all viewers.

Watch the full, hour-long program in the Media section or over at PBS Video.

Educators’ Guide and Screening Companion

On the subject of “classroom settings,” we are also very excited to announce the release of the film’s educators’ guide and screening companion, available for download immediately in PDF format. This 22-page guide offers suggestions for facilitating discussions and activities, as well as screening the film with classroom and community audiences.

The film and guide explore topics relevant to studio art, art history, and the humanities, as well as themes central to his artistic practice, including: the role of the artist in society; narrative and storytelling; personal and social histories; process and play; and collaboration. We encourage educators and event organizers to learn more about these topics and to connect them with related discussion questions, activities, and screening ideas.

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Warm up your televisions and set your DVRs: Art21′s latest film, William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible, premieres on PBS this week. The national broadcast premiere is scheduled for October 21 at 10:00 p.m., though broadcast times vary by region (for example, the New York broadcast time is Wednesday, October 20, at 10:00 p.m.). Please remember to check your local listings to find out when the program will air on your local PBS station.

Join Art21 on Twitter tonight as we share moments live from the New York premiere at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

Educators’ Guide and Screening Companion
A free 26-page educators’ guide and screening companion has been produced to accompany the film. The guide is designed for use in a wide range of cultural and educational institutions, and is available for download from the film site later this week.

Support Art21′s Educational Initiatives
Art21 is pleased to offer educators and their students a number of resources specifically designed to accompany William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible. These materials explore various facets of Kentridge’s work and offer suggestions for facilitating discussions and activities, as well as screening the film with classroom and community audiences. Help Art21 provide free resources for educators by joining Art21′s Back to School campaign.

DVD Pre-order
The William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible DVD will be released through PBS Home Video on October 21. Pre-order the film from ShopPBS and receive 20% off this and other Art21 titles. Visit ShopPBS for more information.

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We are excited to announce that preview screenings of William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible are taking place throughout October at select venues across the country. Screening hosts represent a broad range of organizations and institutions celebrating the national broadcast of Art21′s first hour-long film devoted to a single artist.

Screening events have already taken place at the Cape Cod Art Museum in Dennis, Massachusetts, the Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis, Indiana, and Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City, Michigan. After months of working with our screening organizers to plan each unique event, it is exciting to hear how audiences are responding to Art21′s new film. Select events are highlighted below.

Preview screenings will continue across the country throughout October. Future events also include screenings at the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center in Atlanta, Georgia (Oct. 16), the Henry Art Gallery in Seattle, Washington (Oct. 15 & 16), and the Blaffer Art Museum at the University of Houston in Texas (Oct 16).

Continue reading for highlights from previous and upcoming screening events, and we hope that you will join us at a screening near you!

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Production still from the film <em>William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible</em>. © Art21, Inc., 2010.

Production still from the film William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible. © Art21, Inc., 2010.

The New York City premiere of William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible will take place on Monday, October 18 at the Museum of Modern Art. While the event is not open to the public, we want to give you a chance to join us for the festivities.

We are holding a simple drawing to give away FIVE pairs of tickets to the exclusive event. For those not in New York, we are also giving away FIVE copies of the William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible DVD (shipping at the end of October) to viewers outside of the New York City area.

Enter the drawing below

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We have a handful of new media to highlight from the last two weeks. In addition to the first short preview clip from the film, we also have a pair of new teaser videos, as well as a pair of thematic slideshows.

William Kentridge. Drawing for the film Stereoscope, 1998–99. Charcoal and pastel on paper; 47 1/4 x 63 in. Copyright and courtesy of William Kentridge.

IMAGE SLIDESHOWS
On Play
Examining the role of play in the artist’s work and process, illustrated by the artist’s performance-based works.

On Animated Films
A survey of the artist’s charcoal drawing-based animated films, exploring the history of the early films, as well as the process and subject matter involved.

VIDEOS
Preview: Life in the Studio
William Kentridge discusses life in the studio as depicted in the films that comprise the series, 7 Fragments for Georges Mèliés (2003).

Teaser #5
Teaser #6

Dive into the Media section for the full set of videos and slideshows, and stay tuned for more in the coming weeks.

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Fall preview season is upon us, so it’s time for us to throw our cards into the mix. The first trailer for William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible is now available for your viewing pleasure in the Media section (and after the break below), as well as at any of your (and our) favorite video-sharing or video-watching platforms.

On the subject of media, new image slideshows are coming later this week, each featuring thematic narratives by way of pairing artworks, photos, and exclusive production stills with selected quotes from the artist. In the meantime, catch up with the first two slideshows: In the Studio is a glimpse of the artist at work in his Johannesburg studio; and On Perception shows the range of optical trickery and techniques adapted by the artist through various projects.

Finally, we released two more teaser videos since the launch of this site; all four teasers can be viewed in the Media section. Catch the trailer past the break, and be sure to browse through the Media section for additional videos and images.
Continue reading »

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We are excited to formally announce the forthcoming broadcast of our latest film, William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible, the first film produced by Art21 for national television broadcast outside of the biennial Art in the Twenty-First Century series. The film is also Art21′s first feature to focus on a single artist.

The broadcast premiere of William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible takes place this October 21 at 10:00 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings).

On this site, you can learn more about the film, watch related videos, and browse through image slideshows. Throughout the coming weeks leading into the October 21 broadcast, we will be releasing additional features related to William Kentridge: Anything Is Possible. Features will include essays and interviews contributed by writers from the Art21 Blog stable of contributors, preview and exclusive videos, thematic image slideshows, educational features, and much more.

Get the latest updates by subscribing to this site’s RSS feed, or keep up with this and other Art21 related materials by signing up for our email newsletter or by joining our community on Facebook, Twitter, and the Art21 Blog.

Stay tuned, we’re just getting started!