Last weekend, Zanele Muholi traveled to Cincinnati to attend the opening night of her exhibit, Personae, at the Freedom Center. Her exhibit is apart of the larger FotoFocus events occurring all October here in Cincinnati. After guests were allowed to view her photographer, Muholi gave a speech and had performances to elevate the experience.
Exhibit:
As mentioned, her exhibit that opened is called Personae and involves two projects; Faces and Phases and Somnyama Ngonyama. The former presents images of South African women who identify as lesbians while the latter is a series of self portraits. Each of the projects compose Muholi’s “visual activism.” She wants to bring awareness to “black queer and trans” violence and hate crimes in South Africa through her work.
Performance & Speech:
Muholi brought a crew of people with her to the Freedom Center, all whom work with her in visual activism. The first performance involved slam poetry inspired by the shootings at Pulse Night Club in Miami while the second involved music and dance. Muholi then spoke and thanked everyone for bringing her exhibit to the Freedom Center. The more people know about her cause, the more awareness can be raised.
When can you see it?:
Personae will be open at the Freedom Center through January 3, 2017. For more information on Muholi and her work, click here.