Kentridge, whose survey exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art opened on March 14, was the undeniable star of his hometown’s fair. The artist’s face appeared in two striking portraits: one an austere charcoal drawing by Paul Emsley, winner of the 2007 BP Portrait Award, the other a pop-satirical acrylic painting of Kentridge as a Boris Karloff–like Frankenstein by the collaborative Avant Car Guard. Both works were sold by Cape Town galleries: the first, for $30,000, at iArt Gallery; the second, for $2,400, at Whatiftheworld Gallery.

An amiable Kentridge was seen touring the fair with friends on two of the three days of trading. Also present was his local namesake, the young Johannesburg artist who last year legally changed her name from Roelien Brink to William Kentridge; she was spotted making a brief, almost embarrassed appearance on opening night.

Asked about a white button-up shirt he was recently pictured wearing in San Francisco, the real William Kentridge stood up and proffered a style tip: “I have them made by a tailor. They are very easy to bleach, which is especially useful when you work with charcoal.”