Zanele Muholi and the work series that reshaped queer visual histories
Published on 06/27/2026 at 22:51 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Zanele Muholi has built one of the most sustained photographic projects around Black queer life and self-representation of the past two decades. Their long-running series Faces and Phases and Somnyama Ngonyama have turned visual activism into an art-historical anchor for contemporary photography.
The arc of the major series
Launched in 2006, Faces and Phases is an ongoing portrait archive of Black lesbian and transgender individuals, built over many years through repeated sittings and longitudinal relationships with sitters.
The series grew beyond South Africa to include participants from other parts of Africa and the diaspora, forming what Muholi has described as a living, expanding visual record of communities that have been historically erased or misrepresented in mainstream imagery.
Somnyama Ngonyama and self-portraiture
In Somnyama Ngonyama (often translated as 'Hail, the Dark Lioness'), begun around 2012, Muholi turns the camera toward themself in a dense sequence of high-contrast self-portraits, heightening the darkness of their skin through lighting and post-processing.
Each image uses everyday materials - from scouring pads and rubber tires to cable ties and plastic - to reference histories of domestic labor, racial stereotyping and environmental exploitation, while insisting on a composed, confrontational gaze back at the viewer.
All news and background on Zanele Muholi
Further coverage at AD HOC NEWS traces how Muholi's long-term photographic projects intersect with exhibitions, collections and debates around visual activism.
The work core beyond single images
Muholi has consistently described their practice as 'visual activism', stressing that photographs are not only artworks but also tools in social movements and community building around Black LGBTQI+ lives.
Both Faces and Phases and Somnyama Ngonyama expand through time, with new images added and existing sitters re-photographed, so that the series function structurally more like archives than finite projects.
Where the artist stands now
Zanele Muholi continues to extend their long-term series and related bodies of work, integrating new sitters, new locations and new self-portraits into an already substantial photographic corpus.
Key facts on Zanele Muholi
- Artist: Zanele Muholi
- Medium / Genre: Photography (visual activism, portrait series)
- Place(s) of practice: Works between South Africa and international exhibition venues
- Active since: Early 2000s, with major visibility from the mid-2000s
- Key work groups: Faces and Phases, Somnyama Ngonyama, long-term community portrait projects
- Current/last exhibition: Recent institutional and gallery presentations have focused on retrospective installations of Faces and Phases and Somnyama Ngonyama in various cities
- Major collections: The artist's works are held in major public collections in Europe, North America and Africa, reflecting strong institutional engagement with their visual activism
- Awards: Recognized internationally with prizes and honors for contributions to photography and activism
- Next date: currently no announced date in the 30-day window
Frequently asked questions about Zanele Muholi
What defines Zanele Muholi's major work series?
The artist's practice centers on long-term series like Faces and Phases and Somnyama Ngonyama, which build over many years into extensive archives of portraits and self-portraits around Black LGBTQI+ lives.
How does Zanele Muholi describe their artistic approach?
Muholi refers to their work as visual activism, emphasizing that photographs should serve both as art and as political tools that document communities, challenge stereotypes and support broader struggles for equality and recognition.
Where can audiences encounter Zanele Muholi's work?
Their photographs are regularly included in museum and biennial exhibitions and form part of major public collections, meaning that viewers encounter their long-running series in both dedicated solo shows and broader thematic group presentations.
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