photograph of darkened, non-descript background; the face of a bearded black man emerges in middle center; PR and PL hands also emerge in LLC and LRC; scattered bits of dirt surrounds face and hands

%C2%A9 Mohau Modisakeng

Lefa 5, 2016

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Mohau Modisakeng’s photographic work is essentially autobiographical. He uses costumes, props, and his own body to address the trauma and loss in his life as well as the collective black experience of apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa. (Apartheid was the institutional racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa from 1948 to 1991.) In this photo, he shows himself buried in coal to reflect on South Africa’s history of exploiting its underground natural resources and the young black men who mine them. While inherently political, Modisakeng’s work often has a strong spiritual component: here, his slightly opened hands and eyes hint at rebirth and healing.

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Details
Title
Lefa 5
Artist Life
born 1986
Role
Photographer
Accession Number
2017.23
Curator Approved

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photograph of darkened, non-descript background; the face of a bearded black man emerges in middle center; PR and PL hands also emerge in LLC and LRC; scattered bits of dirt surrounds face and hands

© Mohau Modisakeng

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