Zanele Muholi

Zanele Muholi was born at Umlazi near Durban in 1972, trained at the Market Photo Workshop in Johannesburg, and took an MFA in documentary media at Ryerson University in Toronto. Muholi describes themself as a visual activist rather than an artist. Faces and Phases, begun in 2006, is an ongoing archive of black-and-white portraits of Black lesbian, gay, trans and intersex South Africans, made in response to violence against them and intended as a record that cannot be erased. Somnyama Ngonyama — Hail the Dark Lioness, in isiZulu — is a series of self-portraits begun in 2012, in which Muholi turns everyday materials such as clothes pegs, scouring pads and rubber tyres into costume and heightens the contrast so their skin reads darker. Tate Modern held a major survey in 2020.

Most of what comes to market is editioned gelatin silver photography. The Faces and Phases portraits are generally made in editions at a consistent size, while the Somnyama Ngonyama self-portraits have been printed at several sizes, including very large, each as its own edition, so series, size and edition number together identify the work. A certificate or signed label from the studio or gallery normally travels with each print. Deep silver blacks show handling marks, scuffs and fingerprints easily, and large sheets crease. Muholi has more recently made paintings as well, which are a separate field. The representing galleries hold the edition records.