Rise and Fall of Apartheid

Design Indaba Conference speaker David Goldblatt's work can be seen at the "Rise and Fall of Apartheid" exhibition on at Museum Afrika in Johannesburg.

Rashid Lombard Photo. Dr Alan Boesak during the funeral of the Cradock Four, July 1985

Jodi Bieber, Protest against Chris Hani’s assassination, 1993. © Goodman Gallery Johannesburg.

Graeme Williams, Portrait of Nelson Mandela painted on the grass of Soweto's largest football stadium during an election rally, 1994. Courtesy the artist. © Graeme Williams.

Gille de Vlieg, Pauline Moloise (mother of Ben), two women & Winnie Madikizela Mandela mourn at the Memorial Service for Benjamin Moloise, who was hanged earlier that morning. Khotso House, Johannesburg, October 18, 1985. © Gille de Vlieg.

Graeme Williams, Member of the ultra-right-wing AWB attends a rally with his girlfriend, Pretoria, 1991. Courtesy the artist. © Graeme Williams.

Alf Khumalo, South Africa goes on trial. Police outside the court. The whole world was watching when the three major sabotage trials started in Pretoria, Cape Town and Maritzburg. Outside the palace of Justice during the Rivonia Trial, 1963. Courtesy of Baileys African History Archive. © Baileys African History Archive.

Paul Weinberg. Conservative party member Andries P. Treurnicht addresses supporters in Nylstrooom, stronhold of the Afrikaner far right, 1983

Peter Magubane, Sharpeville Funeral: More than 5,000 people were at the graveyard, May 1960. Courtesy Baileys African History Archive.

Eli Weinberg, Crowd near the Drill Hall on the opening day of the Treason Trial, Johannesburg, December 19, 1956. Times Media Collection, Museum Africa, Johannesburg.

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Posted 5 Mar 14 By Design Indaba Art & Photography Creative Work / Design News Comments

Rise and Fall of Apartheid: Photography and the Bureaucracy of Everyday Life is a photographic exhibition examining the legacy of the apartheid system and how it penetrated even the most mundane aspects of social existence in South Africa, from housing, public amenities, transportation, to education, tourism, religion, and businesses.

Complex, vivid, evocative, and dramatic, the exhibition currently on at Museum Afrika in Johannesburg, includes nearly 500 photographs, films, books, magazines, newspapers, and assorted archival documents and covers more than 60 years of powerful photographic and visual production that form part of the historical record of South Africa.

Several photographic strategies, from documentary to reportage, social documentary to the photo essay, were each adopted to examine the effects and after-effects of apartheid's political, social, economic, and cultural legacy. Curated by Okwui Enwezor with Rory Bester, the exhibition proposes a complex understanding of photography and the aesthetic power of the documentary form and honors the exceptional achievement of South African photographers.

Photographers' work on display include David Goldblatt, Omar Badsha , Roger Ballen ,  Jodi Bieber , Leon Levson , Peter Magubane, Santu Mofokeng  and Jurgen Schadeberg as well as Kevin Carter , Greg Marinovich, Ken Oosterbroek and João Silva of the so-called Bang Bang Club.

Rise and Fall of Apartheid runs until 29 June 2014  at Museum Africa in Johannesburg. Open Tuesday to Sunday between 9:00 and 17:00.