Category Archives: Eyes

2015 Jan. 3: I dropped out of the closet many times

“It is a story about my coming out, its more significant than any part of my life history” Being who I am should not compromise who you are. The road to coming out was not easy. I was born in … Continue reading

Posted in Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Beatings, Creating awareness, Expression, Eyes, Face, Faces & Phases portraits, Faces and Phases (2006 - 2014), Gratitude, Gratitude to my lover, Inner feelings, Insulted, Interaction, Interpretation, Intervention, Irritation, Issues of sexuality, Knowledge, Language, Lesbian, Lessons learnt, Life, Life is a production..., Life lived, Life Stories, Life story, Live, Living, Living by example, Longing, Look at me, Loss to the black lesbian community, Lost Lives, Love is a human right, Love is Queer, Loved, Lovely words, Mainstream media, Mainstream spaces, Mainstreaming our queer issues, Making a mark, Memories, Moments, Moments in herstory, My body, My life in short, Nasty, Nature, Participants, Participation, Patience, Personification, Photo Expressions, Pleased, Political space, Politics of existence, Portraiture series, Power of the Voice, Powerful, Presentations, Pressure, Previous life stories, Privilege, Proud lesbian, Proud to be, Queer & Straights, Queer Africans speaking for themselves., Queer Power, Queer visibility, Queer Zimbabwe, Questions, Questions and Answers, Readers, Readings, Real, Reality, Realization, Reason, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, recognized, Recognizing the problem, Recording, Records and histories, Reflection, Reflections, Related links, Relationship, Relationship with own body, Relationships, relative, Relatives, Remembering, Reminiscing, Report, Representation, Representing, Resentments, Respect, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, Response, Reviews, Reviving the culture of reading and writing, revolution, Rumours, safe, Scared, Scripted, Scriptures, Sexual orientation, Sexuality, Sharing, Sharing knowledge, Silence, Smile, Solidarity, Solution, South Africa, South African Black Female Photographers, South African townships, Speaking for ourselves, Statement, Straights, Struggles, Struggling, Suffered, Supporters, Supporting each other, Supportive friends and families, Survived, Teachings, Tears, Texts, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Thankful, Time, Timing, together, Together we can, Togetherness, Touching, Transformation, Transparency, Trust, Tshona is a Zimbabwean language, violation of rights, Violence, Visibility, Vision, Visual activism, Visual activism is a language, Visual democracy, Visual diaries, Visual historical initiative, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Visualizing our lives, Visualizing public spaces, Visuals, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, Weeping, When home is a crime scene, When Love is a Human Right, Where & Who is Justice?, Writing is a Right, Zimbabwe | 22 Comments

2014 Dec. 14: The kiss that moved the church

© Photo by Charmain Carrol @ VMCI – Johannesburg Camera used:  Canon 60D with 75-300 mm lens   What: Bathini Dambuza & Portia Dludlu’s engagement ceremony Union blessed by Pastor Mazibuko       “I always prayed to get married … Continue reading

Posted in Allies, Alternative career choices, Alternative family, Announcement, Another Approach Is Possible, Apology, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Arguments, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Articles, Articulation, Attention, Audience, Background, Beautiful, Beautiful faces, Beautiful people, Beauty, Before US, Before You, Begging, Being conscientized, Being seen, Black Bodies of Silence, Black lesbian beauty, Black Lesbian Icons in South Africa, Blackness, Blessings, Bodies, Bodies and histories, Body, Bonding, Brave, Bringing photography to the community, Captioned, Captured, Caring citizens, Categories, Celebrating Women, Celebration, Challenges of black lesbian youth, Characters, Choice, Citizenship, Civil Union, Claiming, Collaborations, Collective, Comfort, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Dress code, Dress sense, Embodies, Emotional support, Empowerment, Encounter, Endurance, English, Entertainment, Evidence, Excitement, Experience, Expertise, Exploration, Exposure, Expression, Eyes, Face, Facilitation, Facing You, Facts, Families and Friends, Family, Family and Friends, Fashion, Featuring, Feelings, Female being, Frank, Freedom, Friends, Friendships, Function, I use CANON, I was (T)here, Identity, Perception, SA Constitution, SA LGBTI experts, Self love, Self recognition, Sexual Liberation, Sexual orientation, Sexuality, Sexuality in South Africa, Sharing, Sharing knowledge, Silence, Silent voices, Social responsibility, Society, South Africa, South African Black Female Photographers, South African lesbians, South African politics, South African struggle, South African traditions, South African Visible Arts, South African visual history through the eyes of young women, Space, Speaking for ourselves, Special event, Statement, Subject of Art, Support is the system, Supporting each other, Survived, Teaching young women photography, Tears, Terrified, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Thankful, Thoughts, Time, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, Visual diaries, Visual historical initiative, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Warmth, We Are You, We Care, We love each other, We love photographs, We Love Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

2014 Oct. 16: The lawyer in the classroom

Report by Lerato Dumse & Zanele Muholi Photos by Thobe Gumede         Where:  Aurora Girls High School, SOWETO What:  2014 PhotoXP – Guest speaking Mpho Nefuri was our guest speaker of the day, she addressed the young … Continue reading

Posted in 2014 Cape Town Month of Photography, 2014 Photo XP, About PhotoXP, Act, Acting, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Advocacy, Allies, Alternative family, Announcement, Another Approach Is Possible, Art Activism, Art Edutainment, Article, Articles, Articulation, Attention, Aurora Girls High School, Background, Beautiful faces, Bringing photography to the community, Cameras, Captioned, Captured, Career, Caring citizens, Celebrating Women, Celebration, Characters, Citizenship, Claiming, Claiming mainstream spaces, Class, Collaborations, Collective, Collectivism, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community education, Community Mobilizing, Community work, Connected souls, Consideration, Conversation, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Democracy, Details, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, Evidence, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Eyes, Facing You, Faith, Family, Feelings, Friends, Friendships, Gender activist, Health bodies, Hope, Human rights, I am not the only one, I am Somebody, I can't do it ALONE, I love photography, I was (T)here, I was here, Ignorance, Interpretation, Intervention, Introduction, Lawyers in the classroom, Learning, Let us give a girl child a chance, Life, Life is a production..., Life Stories, Linda Mankazana, Lindeka Qampi, Living, Love, Love is a human right, Love is Queer, Lovely words, Mainstream media, Media works, Memory, My body, Organizing, Peers, Perception, Photos by Thobe Gumede, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Presentation, Relationships, Remembering, Report, Respect, revolution, the attorney, We Are You | 1 Comment

2014 Sept. 24: “At times I’d get jealous thinking she was taking my place”

  My name is Ayanda Masina, popularly known as ‘Ayanda Kiss’ or Kgokgo to some friends. I have a lot of nicknames. I guess it goes with the level we at with our friendship. On a beautiful day on April 25 in … Continue reading

Posted in 1991 -, 1st Prince for Lesbian beauty pageant, 2012, Activism, Activists, Advocacy, Allies, Ayanda Kiss’, Ayanda Masina, Background, Black Lesbian, Black Queer Born Frees, Captioned, Challenging the un-African homosexuality, Characters, Citizenship, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collaborations, Collective, Commitment, Committed, Community, Community based media, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Education, EPOC, Equality Project, Exploration, Exposure, Expression, Eyes, Faces and Phases (2006 - 2014), Facing You, Family, Fashionista, Feelings, Forum for the Empowerment of Women (FEW), Friendships, Gender, Girlfriend, Good singer, Grades at schools, Homophobia, Hurt, I Am, I am not the only one, I love photography, Johannesburg, Lack of funds to pursue chosen career, Learning, lgbti, Life Stories, Living, Love, Loving, Marches, Mother, Out, Participant, Photographs, Photography, Politics of existence, Politics of representation, Portrait, Poverty, Power of the Voice, Prejudice, Pride March, Profile, Proud lesbian, Proud to be, Queer Beauty Pageants in the townships, Queer Education in SA, Queer South Africa, Queer visibility, Queer Workshops, Queer Youth, Reflection, Related links, Relationship with own body, Relationships, Respect, Respected person, Response, Reviving the culture of reading and writing, secondary victimisation, Self discovery, Self love, Self portraits, Self recognition, Sexual orientation, Sexuality, Sexuality in South Africa, Sharing, Sharing knowledge, Shift on SABC 1, Single mom, Single parent, South Africa, South African lesbians, South African politics, South African Youth, Tomboys, Tsakane Secondary School, Tsakane townships, Unemployment, We Love Photography, Women's power, Women's Pride, Women's struggles, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Womenonwomen, Words, Writing is a Right, Young talent, Young Women and Visual Activism, Youth, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi | 1 Comment

2014 Aug. 8: To be honest I love how I look

My name is Katiso Kgope, and I was born on September 18, in 1995. I was born in Glen Wood hospital, Benoni my parents are Mandla Kgope and the late Mpho Kgope – Monyake. I was given the name of … Continue reading

Posted in "Scratching the surface", 1995 -, 20 Years of Democracy, Acceptance, Act, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, Alternative career choices, Another Approach Is Possible, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Activism, Articles, Articulation, Attention, Baring, Beautiful faces, Beauty, Beauty pageantry, Beauty queens, Before You, Being conscientized, Being Scene, Birthdate, Black, Black bodies, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Born Frees, Black Queer Born Frees in SA townships, Blackness, Body, Body Politics, Cameras, Celebrating Youth Month in SA, Chains, Characters, Claiming, Claiming blackness, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collectivism, Comfort, Comments from the audience, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community Mobilizing, Community outreach, Daveyton, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, English, Evidence, Exchanging Queer thoughts, Experience, Exploration, Exposure, Expression, Eyes, Facing You, Family, Family and Friends, Fashion, Feelings, Female being, Finances, Friendships, Gender articulation, God is with us, God's will, He(ART), Honesty, Human rights, Humiliation, I was (T)here, Identity, Interpretation, Interviews, Katiso Kgope, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Language, Lessons learnt, Liberation, Life, Life Stories, Living by example, Love, Love is a human right, Loved, Lovely words, Media works, Memories, Modeling, Moments in herstory, New York, No artificiality, Opinion, Ownership of the self, Owning our bodies, Perception, Photography, Photography as a therapy, Platform, Politics of existence, Politics of representation, Portrait, Power of the Voice, Privilege, Proud to be, Queer visibility, Queer Youth, Questioning, Questions & Answers, Readers, Readings, Reason, Recognition, recognized, Respect, Respect & Recognition from our community, Response, Seeing difference, Self acceptance, Self discovery, Self love, Self-worth, Sharing knowledge, Sharing thoughts, She, South Africa, South African townships, South African Visual Activism, South African Youth, Speaking for ourselves, Special event, Studying, Style, Stylish, Support, Talented, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Togetherness, trans bodies, Trans Youth, Transgender visibility, Transgender Voices, Transgenderism in Africa, Transwoman, Visual activism is a language, Visual Activist, Visual democracy, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Womanhood, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi, Zulu is a South African language | 3 Comments

2014 July 15: “Intombi” – Photo of the Day

Title:  Intombi I … in collaboration with Valerie Thomas, Paris (2014)       (Re)inventing Aesthetic and (Re)imagining Meaning: (Re)creating Black Beauty By Bridget Ngcobo   Zanele Muholi, a black South African visual activist standing in Paris, France stands in … Continue reading

Posted in Artists, Arts, ‘freakshow’, Baring, Being Scene, Black bodies, Black Bodies of Silence, Black Queer Artists, Black Queer Professionals, Body, Body Politics, Brave, Breasts, Bridget Ngcobo, Choice, Claiming, Collaborations, Comfort, Cultural activists, Culture, Demonstration, Description, Details, Different positions, Disappointment, Discomfort, discourse, DNA, Education, Emotional support, Eyes, Feelings, Friendships, Grateful, Gratitude, Health bodies, Health matters, Heartbreak, Hearts, History, Hope, I use CANON, Interpretation, M(asked), My name is Zanele Muholi, Not Science, Owning our bodies, question of history., Reflections, Relationships, Robing, Self recognition, Shining abroad, Skin, South African Visible Arts, Stripped, Studio format, Touch, Valerie Thomas | 3 Comments