Corinna Kern October 21, 2015

Tulie and Anezwa. Magenigeni Village, Tshabo, South Africa 2014

Corinna Kern (b.1986, Germany) completed her Master in Photojournalism at the University of Westminster in London in 2013 and was selected for the Getty Images Reportage Emerging Talent Award in 2014. She was nominated as a finalist for the Alexia Foundation Professional Grant 2015 and was featured on POYI and the NPPA Best of Photojournalism. Corinna has exhibited at Krakow Photo Fringe, Backlight Photo Festival and New York Photo World. Her work has been published TIME, CNN, Vice, Magazine du Monde, Die Zeit, De Standaard, Daily Mail, and Esquire.

About the Photograph:

“This photo is part of my series ‘Mama Africa, a documentary on transgender women in South Africa’s townships and rural communities. Due to the strong social stigma that are attached to transgenderism in African culture, it is a topic in need of awareness in order to provoke social change. Traditional beliefs entrenched in African culture consider nonconforming gender and gender expression un-African, contradicting one of the most liberal constitutions in the world in terms of LGBT rights. Hate crimes and institutionalized homophobia are common phenomenon and often force individuals to conform their gender according to society’s standards.”

“Despite the harsh realities that transgender women face in South Africa, my project resulted in a colourful and celebratory series. It documents four individuals in their endeavors to integrate themselves into a hetero-patriarchal society while experiencing a surprisingly high level of acceptance. One of my main characters is Tulie, a 23-year old transgender woman who was awarded Miss Tran’s and regularly participates as a model in fashion shows. She is very popular amongst her wider community and was joking around with her friend at the time the photo was taken. I would have loved to understand more of what they were saying since most of it was in Xhosa. Nevertheless, I picked up that many of their conversations were evolving around men or relationships.”

“It was a very positive and relaxed atmosphere. I always felt very comfortable and safe walking around with Tulie, be it through the township where she lives or the rural areas of Tshabo where she grew up and where this photograph was taken. On that day, Tulie visited Tshabo to help her family with preparations for a traditional ceremony where the tombstones of recently deceased family members are unveiled. I was particularly intrigued by the contrast of Tulie, being a very fashionable, self-confident and outgoing character, in a rural and conservative environment, adding to the ambiguity and fluidity of gender while challenging the stereotypical notions of African gender identity.”

Philipp Engelhorn August 5, 2013

Cape Town, South Africa 2011

Philipp Engelhorn (b.1968, Germany) is a travel and documentary photographer. After living in New York for six years and working as a photo assistant for Russell James, Sheila Metzner and Patrick Demachelier he relocated to Hong Kong in 2002 to start his own career. Philipp freelances for OUTSIDE, Men’s Journal, Wall Street Journal, New York Times , The Herald Tribune, Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast Traveller, Newsweek, Time, Der Spiegel, Financial Times, Forbes, Fortune, Greenpeace, Grands Reportages, Geo Saison, among others.

About the Photograph:

“I shot this image in Cape Town while working on a feature story about the notorious number gangs (26/27/28). It was hard to get access to the gang members, so the whole story took me two months to complete. Most of my time was spend in Manenberg and Gugulethu, some of the toughest Townships outside Cape Town. Known simply as Joker (a member of #28) but christened Monty this well-muscled 27 year old former convict lives and hustles for work on the streets of Cape Town. A prison sentence of six years on twenty-four separate charges including assault, drug use and selling, robbery, arms possessions, etc. saw Joker emerge a member of the 28s. He is most proud of the impressive 28 tattoos that adorns his body, and the line: Dead is a holiday with no return on his chest.”

Sam Wolson May 13, 2013

A room in the Central Methodist church used  for individuals with HIV. Johannesburg 2011

Sam Wolson (b. 1989, USA) is a California-based freelance photographer and multimedia producer, currently interning at the San Fransisco Chronicle. In 2011, Sam graduated from the University of Michigan where he studied film-making. Over the past year he has been working on stories around the world from Zimbabwe to Colombia covering issues surrounding public space, immigration and marginalized communities. He has published with Slate, The Mail & Guardian, The Atlantic Cities, the San Francisco Chronicle and maintains a photography blog for the The Huffington Post.

About the Photograph:

“This photo was taken in a large church turned refugee camp in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. I had been working on a story with a writer about a Zimbabwean immigrant named Reymond who had been living in the church for the last five years. In October 2011, we traveled to Reymond’s home in Zimbabwe to see what would lead someone to leave in order to live under such difficult conditions in the church, where every night can be a struggle to find a safe place to sleep, food to eat, and shelter from potential violence that engulfs Johannesburg. Upon returning from Zimbabwe I spent extensive time at the church with Reymond. This scene takes place in a room at the church that houses people with HIV and other heath issues. Typically during the day everyone is asked to leave the building, but exceptions are made for the sick and families with young children. In composing the photo I tired to flatten the space making the man almost seem to become part of the fading mural in the background.”

David Chancellor September 26, 2012

Huntress with buck, Eastern Cape, South Africa 2010

David Chancellor (b. 1961, England) has exhibited in major galleries and museums, and published worldwide. Named Nikon photographer of the year three times, he received a World Press Photo in 2010 for ‘Elephant Story’ from the series ‘Hunters’. A study of his wife and son was exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery London, and the following year he won the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize, at the National Portrait Gallery. In 2011 he was a nominee for the fifth Annual Photography Masters Cup, his work was shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Organization Award, and the Freedom to Create Prize. His series Hunters, in which he explores the relationship between man and animal, will be released as a monograph in 2012. He lives in South Africa and is represented by INSTITUTE.

About the Photograph:

“This image is from my work documenting the tourist trophy hunting industry in Sub Saharan Africa today. It explores the complex relationship that exists between man, and animal, the hunter and the hunted. Josie was 12 years old when I met her. She is from Birmingham, Alabama, USA. She is an experienced hunter, and rider, and had come with her mother and father, also experienced hunters, to South Africa to hunt her first African animal. Many hunters consider this journey as a rite of passage and bring their children to Africa to hunt. I spent two days with Josie and her family documenting their hunting. The opportunities to work whilst following a hunter are brief and intense. I’ve worked a great deal with Josie’s professional hunter and he’s comfortable with me being around. I will always explain who I am and what I’m doing and then usually not speak with the hunter again during the hunt.” (more…)

Marc Shoul June 21, 2012

George’s Boxing Club. Hillbrow, Johannesburg 2005

Marc Shoul (b. 1975, South Africa) graduated from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in 1999. Since then, he has been a freelance photographer, having worked for various publications such as Time, Colors, and Monocle etc. His works have been exhibited in Australia, Switzerland, Italy and South Africa. His ‘Brakpan’ series won first prize in the Winephoto competition in 2011. Marc has worked on stories ranging from HIV to energy solutions to Rhino preservation. He is represented by Panos and is based in Johannesburg.

About the Photograph:

“This image forms part of a series called ‘Flatlands’, which concentrates on the inner city of Johannesburg. Once a cosmopolitan area reserved for whites, the city center is now home to residents from all over Africa looking for opportunity in the “City of Gold”. Hanson and Derrick were photographed in George’s Boxing Club. I got there early one morning; many of the boxers who live and train there were still getting out of bed and washing up. Their day begins with a prayer session before they start their laborious training session. The gym’s infrastructure is minimal and basic. It has a few boxing bags and old equipment scattered around. George, the trainer, promoter and owner, runs the place during the day and works night shifts as a security guard to keep the gym operational. He was a boxer in his day and once lived on the streets. For many of the boxers here, this is their only chance to make it in a very competitive business. They are literally fighting for their lives.”

Ilvy Njiokiktjien January 9, 2012

Kommando Korps Camp, South Africa

Ilvy Njiokiktjien (b.1984, The Netherlands) studied journalism and photography in Utrecht. Ilvy graduated in 2006 and started working as a writer and photographer for the Dutch newspaper Sp!ts and for the Dutch Press Agenc ANP. In 2007 worked for The Star, a daily newspaper based in South Africa, Johannesburg. This is where the idea arose to travel from Johannesburg to Utrecht, by car. In 2008 she won the Canonprijs, part of the Zilveren Camera (Silver Camera). In that same year she also won the first prize in the National Geographic Photography Contest. In 2011 Njiokiktjien won the Canon AFJ Female Photojournalist Award. Her work on adolescents in South Africa will be presented at the Perpignan Photo Festival in 2012.

About the Photograph:

“These boys are part of a group known as the Kommando Korps, founded by a white fringe organisation in South Africa. The boys are at the camp for several reasons, one of them is to learn self defense. But the most important reason is to learn about their white race. Colonel Franz Jooste, the leader of the camp, teaches the kids about their white Afrikaner identity, the white struggle for a free country for whites within South Africa and other racist ideas. The children, all born after apartheid, are part of the so called born free generation. This generation was is supposed to bring unity and change in South Africa, but instead they are taught polarization and hatred towards blacks. I made this photograph while the boys were having a little break from their military style training. It was a moment when you could actually see that they are ‘normal’ boys, instead of young soldiers.”

Araminta de Clermont November 3, 2011

Initiated Xhosa men. Cape Town 2010

Araminta de Clermont (b. 1971, England) is a documentary portrait photographer based in London. Having trained as an architect, her work is partly informed by the relationship between the built environment and its inhabitants. Her time as a photographer at the Sunday Times, South Africa, (working under picture editor Greg Marinovich of the Bang Bang club), exploring a country attempting to recover has also been a powerful influence on her work. Her photographs have appeared in The Guardian, The Times Magazine, and Spectrum, among others, and is in collections including The South African National Gallery. In 2010 she was one of the winners of Spier Contemporary, as well as recently having a portrait accepted by The Taylor Wessing Photo Prize at The National Portrait Gallery.

About the Photograph:

“This photograph is part of a series of recently initiated young Xhosa men living in the townships surrounding Cape Town. With their families being displaced from rural, historically beleaguered areas like The Eastern Cape, these young men, living in the marginalized sprawls of urban shack-lands, are holding tightly onto their own culture’s traditions. For the majority of these young men, the initiation process is a watershed, an  opportunity to start new way of being. For up to six months after his time in the bush, a newly initiated man will wear clothing which denotes his new status, showing that he has left childhood behind, has gone through the circumcision process (with all the accompanying challenges) and has entered a new phase of life, maturity, and responsibility. This outward demonstration of an inner change is a hugely significant part of the process, and a great source of pride. Such outfits also serve to remind the wearer to behave befittingly and respectfully in this period of transition. Still, I was very much left with questions about the validity of a new start and new hope, when seen in the context of surroundings which have not changed as the man has?”

Chelsea MacLachlan September 22, 2011

From the project “Unaccompanied”. Cape Town 2009

Chelsea MacLachlan (b. 1987, South Africa) got her first camera at the age of 12 and has been photographing her environment ever since. Receiving a scholarship to study at Michaelis School of Fine Art (UCT) meant she could develop her skills and passion further. Since graduating she has spent a year in Italy working for Colors Magazine at Fabrica, been nominated for the Tierney Fellowship twice, been a finalist on FotoVisura and had her work exhibited in Cape Town, Vienna and San Francisco. She is currently based in Cape Town freelancing for various publications while pursuing personal projects.

About the Photographs:

“These two portraits are part of a project and exhibition entitled “Unaccompanied”. It examines a notion within South Africa whereby people are dying in separation from their families. It seeks to use portraits to reconnect families in a small way. For Hanjiwe Mbejwu (right), who is being “held” by her daughter and granddaughter in Mount Frere, Eastern Cape, she needed to move to a city to make money for her family living in the rural areas. Unaware of her HIV positive status meant that she got Aids quickly; Hanjiwe suddenly found herself stuck in Pietermaritzburg alone and unable to return home due to financial constraints. She talked fondly of her family and especially of her granddaughter Lucy whom she had not seen since she was a baby. In delivering the image to Zanele and Lucy, they were delighted, as they did not have any photographs of Hanjiwe. The portrait hung above Lucy’s bed. Hanjiwe passed away from pneumonia in winter 2009.” (more…)

Graeme Williams July 29, 2011

Concordia, South Africa 2005

Graeme Williams (b. 1961. South Africa) was contracted by Reuters to cover South Africa’s transition to ANC rule in 1989. Two years later he began working with the Southern African documentary collective, Afrapix and later went on to become a founding member and manager of South Photographs Agency. His work is housed in permanent collections around the world including; The South African National Gallery, The Rotterdam Museum of Ethnology, Duke University and The Finnish School of Photography. He has staged solo exhibitions in Johannesburg, New York and Paris and has contributed to many combined exhibitions including the 2011 Figures and Fictions exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. Four books of his photographs have been published and he has worked for publications worldwide, including National Geographic Magazine, Time, Newsweek, The New York Times Magazine and Photography magazine (UK).

About the Photograph:

“This photograph was taken in Concordia, a small town in a dusty, semi-desert area in the north-west of South Africa. It forms part of a body of work called The Edge of Town. I traveled to more than one hundred towns throughout South Africa over a period of more then four years. This photograph and the others that make up the series, use a layering effect, in which multiple activities are captured within the frame. This montage of activities intentionally creates a tension and a sense of distorted space but also mirrors the multi-faceted process of change within the country.”

Luke Wolagiewicz December 11, 2009

Ponte City Johannesburg, South Africa

Luke Wolagiewicz (b. 1979, Poland) studied photography (BA) at the Institute of Creative Photography, Silesian University in Opava, Czech Republic. His work has been published in Newsweek, The Times, USA Today, The New York Times, The Financial Times, Le Figaro Magazine, The Economist, LA Times, Stern, Der Spiegel, Mare and Eight magazine, among others. Wolagiewicz has worked across Africa, Middle East, Asia and Europe, focusing his attention on contemporary political and social issues. He is currently based in London.

About the Photograph:

“Ponte City in Johannesburg is one of southern hemisphere’s tallest residential buildings. Located in the heart of Hillbrow (today a notorious crime-ridden part of downtown Central Business District), Ponte was developed as a high-class living location but its fortunes changed drastically over time. During the 1980s and 90s, a time of the Apartheid collapse, and the subsequent demise of the Central Business District, both Ponte and its surrounding areas became exceptionally dangerous places, run by hardened criminals and ruthless drug dealers. This photo was taken in the ground floor cafeteria. The new building management team has started to improve security and services, but most public access areas and recreation facilities still remain scarce and neglected.”

Jonathan Hyams June 1, 2009

Hamburg, South Africa 2006

Jonathan Hyams (b.1984, Canada, raised in England) studied Documentary Photography at the University of Wales, Newport. His work  has been published in the Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, and the New Internationalist as well as supporting campaigns for the Department For International Development, and Defense Children International. Since graduating in 2007, Jonathan continues to contribute to publications such as the Guardian as well as supporting charities like Christian Aid, Oxfam, and Unicef. In September 2008, Jonathan was awarded Hello Young Photographer of the Year in association with Getty Images and Nikon, for his reportage work on war torn Northern Uganda. His work has been exhibited internationally.

About the Photograph:

“Xolile Wiseman is shown at the start of Anti Retroviral treatment for HIV/AIDS. He is photographed holding his ID booklet as a point of reference. Patients beginning treatment now, are likely to have contracted HIV during the mid to late 90s’ –The ID photographs, reissued in the post apartheid ID booklets, now serve as a poignant snapshot of the subjects before contracting the virus. The ID booklet as a symbol, of the marginalization of blacks under apartheid, resonates deeply as many victims of HIV/AIDS find themselves again marginalised, but perhaps more critically from within their own communities.” (more…)

Eren Aytug February 13, 2009

Pink Loerie Gay Festival, South Africa, 2008

Eren Aytuğ (b. 1979, Turkey) is a freelance photographer currently doing his Master’s degree in Marmara University, Communication Faculty, Department of Journalism. He specializes in editorial photography; both reportage and portrait work. He worked as a full time photojournalist for many magazines and newspapers between 1998 and 2007. In 2002, he participated in World Press Photo’s seminar program. In 2006 he photographed postwar daily life in Kabul, Afghanistan. During the past two years he has been working for Turkish and foreign publications, and  also working on independent photography projects. In 2008, he photographed makeshift refugee camps in the South African city of Cape Town.

About the Photograph:

“The Pink Loerie Mardi Gras  started seven years ago and has since had  huge support from the gay and lesbian community. It is the largest gay fest of South Africa and takes place in May every year. In 2008, the town’s Main Street was covered with brightly dressed men sporting placards reading “I am what I am,” “Live and let love” and “I’m the pink sheep in the family”. Curious residents and tourists could be seen lining the pavements to watch the annual gay parade as hundreds of men marched by in outlandish evening wear, sequinned tops and feathered head dresses.”