Notes

‘I have witnessed this at least four times over the last fourteen years. A first morning of incredible fast work. An etching plate no sooner prepared than drawn on and sent off to the acid bath. Robert sits impatiently waiting for the next plate to arrive in front of him. A gourmand determined to get through a twelve[1]course meal before his meter runs out. The proofs come back. A withdrawal. His face drops. Robert reads on his bed for half the afternoon. Deadheads a few roses. Comes into the studio. Peers over the shoulders of other artists. Gives a cursory glance at the proofs on the table. Is taciturm through dinner. “I knew it wouldn’t […] work”. Next morning. He is quiet. Most of the old plates are abandoned but in a disaster in one of them he has found a starting point that seems possible. Sits on the high stool and with a fat felt-tipped marker draws crudely over the proofs. Calls for a new plate. Calls for scissors, cardboard, aquatint. Stops everyone in the studio to listen to the quartet from the beginning of [Mozart’s] Fidelio. In between drawing on a new ground, hand-colouring, dusting plate with photostat toner. Everyone breathes more easily. He casts a more generous eye over the other prints being made. Goes to his room and brings back the diary of a minor Renaissance painter he has been reading and reads aloud sections. The next proof comes back. The cycle of prints is now well underway and won’t be stopped. Mid-afternoon Robert disappears. Returns glowing an hour later. “The Moroccan lamb is in the oven. The chocolate mousse is in the fridge – It must be made with the juice of one Seville orange. Seville is important”.’ – William Kentridge

William Kentridge (2000) Hodgins at Goodman. Johannesburg; Goodman Gallery Editions, page 18.

Literature

Anthea Buys (ed.) (2012) A Lasting Impression: The Robert Hodgins Print Archive, Johannesburg: Wits Art Museum. Another example from this edition is illustrated on pages 38 and 265.