Zanele Muholi shares motivations for documenting South Africa's LGBTI community in this preview of the upcoming "Johannesburg" episode from Season 9 of the “Art in the Twenty-First Century” television series.

Shown taking photographs for the ongoing "Faces and Phases" series, Muholi describes a dedication to what has become a lifelong project. "I am a member of the community. We hardly find images that speaks of love and joys of LGBTI individuals," says the artist. "I told myself that I would do better than any other outsider to project our lives."

Zanele Muholi was born in Umlazi, a township southwest of Durban, South Africa, in 1972. From self-portraiture to photographs of Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people living in South Africa, Zanele Muholi creates work that asserts the presence of South Africa’s historically marginalized and discriminated LGBTI community. Both joyful and courageous, Muholi identifies as a visual activist, driven by a dedication to owning a voice, identity, and history and providing space for others in the community to do the same.

Learn more about the artist at:
https://art21.org/artist/zanele-muholi/

"Johannesburg" from Season 9 of "Art in the Twenty-First Century" premieres September 21 at 9:00 p.m. on PBS.

Learn more about the new season at:
https://art21.org/season9