Tonight, 60 breath-taking black-and-white portraits by Zanele Muholi are taking up residence in Autograph ABP – marking the South African visual activist’s first solo exhibition in London.
Somnyama Ngonyama – which translates as ‘Hail, The Dark Lioness’ (badass, we know) is an ongoing self-portrait series where Muholi uses her body as a canvas to confront the politics of race and representation, using a visually arresting format. Spanning from Europe, to North America and Africa, each portrait critiques social justice, human rights and contested representations of the black body. Through her emotionally charged portraits, with unapologetic directness and invigorating pride – Muholi conveys her personal reflections on a myriad of archetypes. In her own words, ‘reclaiming my blackness, which I feel is continuously performed by the privileged other.’ Somnyama Nhonyama playfully reinterprets classical painting and fashion photography, rearticulating contemporary identity politics as we know it. Everyday objects morph into dramatic and historically loaded props, fusing the political with the aesthetic. Latex gloves allude to sexual politics, domestic servitude and violence – while protective goggles invoke forms of South Africa’s social brutality. Gazing defiantly into the camera, Muholi challenges viewers’ perceptions, simultaneously asserting her cultural identity, on her own terms: black, female, queer, African – hear her roar.Exhibition opens on 14^th July but you can RSVP for the opening show on Thursday 13^th July from 6:30-8:30PM.

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