editions
July 2025
Wozzeck
William Kentridge
'I think I am interested in awkward operas. Operas in which there are unsolved riddles. Operas in which there is a space, both musically and thematically for a world to evolve and be imagined around the story. There has to be a challenge somewhere in it. It has to be a machine for thinking.' William Kentridge
Jillian Ross Print has produced two prints with William Kentridge based on charcoal and red coloured pencil drawings made as studies for the opera, Wozzeck. One print is of a devastated landscape, the other is of a boy playing soldier.
“I'm interested, for example, in this big drawing which is two meters wide and feels like a James Whistler etching. He would get these beautiful light greys just from a very fine dry point. Here we get them in the photogravure.” William Kentridge.
William Kentridge
Drawing for Wozzeck (5 - Dead Trees and Pond), 2016
Charcoal and Coloured pencil on Arches Cover White,
121cm x 160 cm
William Kentridge
Drawing for Wozzeck (30 - Boy Soldier), 2016
Charcoal and Coloured pencil on Hahnemühle,
57cm x 78 cm
The two prints are made from photographs taken from large charcoal drawings which were made as studies for the opera in 2016. The photo of each drawing was reduced in size, for print, and transferred onto a photopolymer plate. A drypoint plate was added as a second layer. Photopolymer plates are known for their rich tonal value and depth of grey. Drypoint, which is made from a burr caused from a sharp needle being scratched into a copper plate and is able produce wispy deep velvety lines, is one of Williams signature techniques. These two plates are printed onto Hahnemühle paper, first the photopolymer plate and then the drypoint plate.
William Kentridge adding drypoint by scratching into a copper plate with a drypoint needle.
The Canadian Opera Company (COC) commissioned Jillian Ross Print to develop the landscape into a benefit print as part of the Company's funding drive for their opening performance of the opera at the Four Seasons Centre of Performing Arts in Toronto in April 2025.
'Tormented by visions and humiliated by his superiors, the soldier Wozzeck (baritone Michael Kupfer-Radecky) discovers that his lover, Marie (soprano Ambur Braid), has entertained the advances of the Drum Major (tenor Matthew Cairns)—a revelation that will culminate in murder, madness, and self-destruction.
This landmark of 20th-century music is brought to life in a new production from the extraordinary imagination of South African artist William Kentridge, offering audiences an immersive, interdisciplinary experience described as “a breathtaking masterpiece... a work of art across many genres."' - The Canadian Opera Company
Wozzeck (Landscape), published by the COC, is an edition of 40, will be available in September 2025.
Wozzeck Child (Wozzeck), published by JRP, is an edition of 20, will be available in mid 2026.
Wozzeck (Landscape)
William Kentridge
Photopolymer and drypoint on Hahnemühle, Natural White, 300gsm
39.2cm x 48.9cm (15¾” x 19¾”)
2025
Edition size 40
Commissioned and Published by the
Canadian Opera Company for their production of Wozzeck, performed at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto, April 2025, as part of their funding drive.
Images of developing the print at the Univeristy of California, Berkeley's printmaking department and at Jillian Ross Print in Saskatoon, Canada.
Published by Canadian Opera Company and Jillian Ross Print
Collaborating Master Printer Jillian Ross
Photopolymer by Brendan Copestake
Editioning and image development at Jillian Ross Print and UCal, Berkeley
Editioning printers Jillian Ross and Hannah F. Duke