Women and Photography in Africa: Creative Practices and Feminist Challenges

This collection explores women's historical and contemporary involvement in photography in Africa, highlighting the complex and diverse ways in which gender and photography have been articulated on the continent. It presents the lives and work of historically significant yet overlooked women photographers and showcases the work of acclaimed contemporary African women photographers. The book offers critical reflections on the politics of gendered knowledge production and the production of racialized and gendered identities, and explores how contemporary African women photographers are engaging with colonial photographic archives to contest stereotypical forms of representation and produce powerful counter-histories.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 296 pages
Publication date: 27 October 2020
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This comprehensive collection delves into the multifaceted historical and contemporary involvement of women in photography across Africa. It presents fresh perspectives on the evolution of photography, examining through case studies the intricate and historically contextualized intersections of gender and photography on the continent. The book also attends to the complexities and opportunities presented by contemporary feminist and postcolonial engagements with the medium. The volume is structured into thematic sections that showcase the lives and work of historically significant yet overlooked women photographers, as well as the remarkable contributions of acclaimed contemporary African women photographers like Héla Ammar, Fatoumata Diabaté, Lebohang Kganye, and Zanele Muholi.

Critical reflections are offered on the politics of gendered knowledge production and the construction of racialized and gendered identities, as well as alternative and subaltern subjectivities. Several chapters shed light on how contemporary African women photographers, collectors, and curators are engaging with colonial photographic archives to challenge stereotypical representations and create powerful counter-histories.

Raising critical questions about race, gender, and the history of photography, this collection serves as a valuable model for interdisciplinary feminist approaches in the fields of art history, visual studies, and African history. It contributes to our understanding of the diverse roles and contributions of women in the photographic landscape of Africa and beyond.

Weight: 584g
Dimension: 155 x 234 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350136564