Preview our FALL 2025 catalog, featuring more than 500 new books on art, photography, design, architecture, film, music and visual culture.
FOURTHWALL BOOKS
William Kentridge & Gerhard Marx: Fire Walker
Edited by Oliver Barstow, Bronwyn Law-Viljoen. Introduction by Bronwyn Law-Viljoen. Text by Alexandra Dodd, Mpho Matsipa, Zen Marie, Jonathan Cane, Mark Gevisser. Interviews by Oliver Barstow. Photographs by John Hodgkiss, Ben Law-Viljoen, Alistair McLachlan.
In 2009, William Kentridge and Gerhard Marx were commissioned to make a public sculpture for the city of Johannesburg, on the occasion of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Their sculpture was based on Kentridge’s drawing of a woman street vendor--known colloquially in Johannesburg as a fire walker--carrying a burning brazier on her head. “Fire Walker” thus stands for the ordinary citizen, whose survival depends on his or her ability to negotiate contested urban terrain. The 36-feet-high figure was installed at the foot of the Queen Elizabeth Bridge, on a site formerly used by street traders and taxi washers. This volume documents the commission and also includes two photo essays on street vendors and old city monuments.
FORMAT: Slip Pbk, 7.75 x 11.75 in. / 123 pgs / 123 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $50.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $67.5 ISBN: 9780986985027 PUBLISHER: Fourthwall Books AVAILABLE: 3/31/2012 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of print AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: NA ONLY
Published by Fourthwall Books. Edited by Oliver Barstow, Bronwyn Law-Viljoen. Introduction by Bronwyn Law-Viljoen. Text by Alexandra Dodd, Mpho Matsipa, Zen Marie, Jonathan Cane, Mark Gevisser. Interviews by Oliver Barstow. Photographs by John Hodgkiss, Ben Law-Viljoen, Alistair McLachlan.
In 2009, William Kentridge and Gerhard Marx were commissioned to make a public sculpture for the city of Johannesburg, on the occasion of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Their sculpture was based on Kentridge’s drawing of a woman street vendor--known colloquially in Johannesburg as a fire walker--carrying a burning brazier on her head. “Fire Walker” thus stands for the ordinary citizen, whose survival depends on his or her ability to negotiate contested urban terrain. The 36-feet-high figure was installed at the foot of the Queen Elizabeth Bridge, on a site formerly used by street traders and taxi washers. This volume documents the commission and also includes two photo essays on street vendors and old city monuments.
