Documentary Photography in Apartheid South Africa

Explore the complex debates and dialogues surrounding realist photography during Apartheid South Africa (1948-1994) in this 59-minute lecture by Professor Tamar Garb, Durning Lawrence Professor in the History of Art. Examine the tensions between advocacy, propaganda, and political struggle against the poetics of everyday life through the work of influential photographers from Ernest Cole and David Goldblatt to contemporary artists like Zanele Muholi and Lebohang Kganye. Journey through the evolution of South African documentary photography, from early international influences and the Libertas Magazine to the groundbreaking impact of Drum Magazine, the visual documentation of protests like Sharpeville, and the emergence of 1980s activist photography. Understand the ethical debates over photographers' roles, the move beyond spectacle, and Santu Mofokeng's "rediscovery of the ordinary" in capturing authentic South African experiences. Recorded at Barnard's Inn Hall in London, this comprehensive examination provides valuable insights into how photography functioned as both witness and artistic expression during one of history's most oppressive regimes.