Art-Movie-Book had the wonderful opportunity to hang out with David Krut at his exhibition space/print studio/bookstore in Maboneng at Arts on Main in Johannesburg. We found him sitting under the trees in the idyllic courtyard, chatting to some art students, who were doing internships at the print studio. Apparently he does that… spends hours listening to people’s ideas, encouraging and giving advice on how to pursue the art market and how to build a career as a successful artist.
He has had a phenomenal journey with very few disappointments (in his own words), a few not so ideal learning curves and in my view more than enough epic successes. His modesty with regards to his career seems rather bizarre taking into account that David has played a significant role in the launching of the careers of various internationally renowned artists like William Kentridge, Willem Boshoff, Wim Botha and Penny Siopis to name a few. He has organised exhibitions for modern artists like David Hockney and Andy Warhol and published an innumerable amount of books on the arts.
David is a chartered accountant by trade, with an obvious and intrinsic love for the arts, but more importantly he has a passion for bringing creative people together to create extraordinary work.
He has stated himself that he is completely in love with paper and as a strong believer in the democratisation of the arts, he has attempted to bring as much literature and art on paper to as many people as possible in his lifetime.
The David Krut Publishing House brought the groundbreaking TAXI series to the people for the first time in 2000. This was more of a heart project than a business venture with educational supplements being made available to schools that needed arts resources, but couldn’t afford them. Once again proof of David’s commitment to taking the arts to the people.
David doesn’t separate between established artists and new talent. In fact he feels that it is necessary to bring the two together to create new and interesting work. He has the ability not only to recognise brilliance in authors and artists, but also to find awe inspiring collaborative spaces that can be found in Johannesburg, Cape Town and New York. Here, artists from all parts of the world with different levels of education, skill and experience come together almost seamlessly. A major feat in itself.
An amazing human being. His career and endless list of accomplishments speaks for itself and I can honestly say that I was humbled to have spent time with David Krut; a person whose love for the arts has played a pivotal role in allowing young artists to find their voices and in turn change the face of the arts in South Africa and sharing it with the world.
