> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # William Kentridge and Lapis Blue - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/william-kentridge-and-lapis-blue/ - Published: 2026-06-26T10:00:52.000Z - Updated: 2026-06-26T10:00:55.000Z - Description: Plus, why is Trump meddling in the Venice Architecture Biennale? - Author: Hyperallergic - Tags: Daily Newsletter, Newsletter By his own admission, William Kentridge’s studio is a “safe space for stupidity.” This principle has served the indefatigable South African artist well — over the course of six decades, he has developed a style all his own spanning printmaking, drawing, animation, and sculpture. Now, he’s sharing insights into his dendritic process in a new book based on a 2024 lecture he delivered at Oxford. Read one such chapter on lapis blue and creativity exclusively on *Hyperallergic*. Also today: a guide to Upstate Art Weekend, Trump’s meddling with the Venice Biennale of Architecture, and an interview with painter Richard Tsao. *—Lakshmi Rivera Amin, associate editor* --- [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/william-kentridge-book.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/a-natural-history-of-william-kentridges-studio/) [ A Natural History of William Kentridge’s Studio ](https://hyperallergic.com/a-natural-history-of-william-kentridges-studio/) Some years ago, two friends gave me a block of watercolour, pure lapis lazuli from Afghanistan. Lapis lazuli is a precious pigment used sparingly in Renaissance painting, now more generally replaced by French ultramarine. But there is an intense blueness in lapis, a colour coming off the paper towards you that is unmatched by any synthetic colour. In projections and photography and printing, this blue always loses its power. I don’t use colour in my drawings. But I painted some squares and circles to see the colour I was given. I was caught, wanting to devour the blue and not knowing how to bring it into anything I was drawing. While waiting to solve what I should do with the blue, I started painting texts and phrases with it | William Kentridge [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/a-natural-history-of-william-kentridges-studio/) --- SPONSORED [![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/paul---daisy-soros-ad.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/a-90-000-graduate-fellowship-for-immigrants-children-of-immigrants-in-the-visual-arts/) ****A $90,000 Graduate Fellowship for Immigrants & Children of Immigrants in the Visual Arts** The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans supports immigrants & children of immigrants in MFA, MA, PhD & other graduate programs. [Learn more ](https://hyperallergic.com/a-90-000-graduate-fellowship-for-immigrants-children-of-immigrants-in-the-visual-arts/) --- ## Queer Elders [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/Richard-Tsao.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/richard-tsaos-sanuk-art/) [ Richard Tsao’s “Sanuk” Art ](https://hyperallergic.com/richard-tsaos-sanuk-art/) In an interview with Hyperallergic, the artist known for his “Flood Room” paintings compares his decades-long practice to “the need for food.” | AX Mina [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/richard-tsaos-sanuk-art/) ## Guide [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/upstate-art-weekend.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/what-you-cant-miss-at-upstate-art-weekend/) [ What You Can’t Miss at Upstate Art Weekend ](https://hyperallergic.com/what-you-cant-miss-at-upstate-art-weekend/) The art extravaganza in New York’s Hudson Valley and Catskills is back with a retrospective of Betty Parsons, a tailgate-style exhibition, living sculptures, and more. [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/what-you-cant-miss-at-upstate-art-weekend/) --- ## Community [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/architecture-biennale.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/trump-is-coming-for-the-architecture-biennale/) [ Art Movements ](https://hyperallergic.com/trump-is-coming-for-the-architecture-biennale/) Trump is coming for the Architecture Biennale, Modigliani’s “indecent” nude fetches $63.9M, the National Gallery of Art gets a major contemporary art gift, and more industry news. [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/trump-is-coming-for-the-architecture-biennale/) [ Required Reading ](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-790/) This week: Scott Burton’s last sculpture, remembering Lebanese environmental activist Mona Khalil, AI slop in art journalism, NYC’s rollerskating queer icon, and more. [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-790/) --- ## Member Comment I love your article Paddy! You always bring my attention to story lines that I don’t know about and are very enriching. I really appreciate it. I can see how you and James really jelled. You both have so much to share with the world. Laura L Smith on “[James Wagner, Insatiable Art Collector, Dies at 85](https://hyperallergic.com/james-wagner-insatiable-art-collector-dies-at-85/)” --- ## From the Archive [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/06/william-kentridge-interview.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/william-kentridge-sees-the-universe-in-a-pot-of-coffee/) [ William Kentridge Sees the Universe in a Pot of Coffee ](https://hyperallergic.com/william-kentridge-sees-the-universe-in-a-pot-of-coffee/) The artist tells Hyperallergic about how the isolation of COVID-19 led to a streaming series set wholly within the bounds of his studio. | Debra Brehmer [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/william-kentridge-sees-the-universe-in-a-pot-of-coffee/)