David Goldblatt

The origins of this book lie in David Goldblatt's simple observation that many of his fellow South Africans, regardless of their race and class, are the victims of often violent crime. "I have asked myself," says Goldblatt, "not least in the fear and fury of holdups with knives and guns, who are you? Are you monsters? Are you 'ordinary' people—if...

Goldblatt began working on Some Afrikaners Photographed, first published in 1975, in 1963. He had sold his father's clothing store where he worked and become a full-time photographer. The ruling Afrikaner National Party—many of its leaders and members had supported the Nazis in the Second World War—was firming its grip on the country in the face of black resistance. Yet...

This book is a selective retrospective of David Goldblatt, a key figure in twentieth-century and contemporary photography. Starting from his earliest photographic searchings, it shows the foundations of Goldblatt's critical passion for photography, his social sensitivity, and political consciousness. Also to see are his most recent photographs, always in tight relation to the changing situation in South Africa, his native...