Zanele Muholi came to prominence in the early 2000s with photographs that sought to re-envision Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and intersex lives in South Africa. Their body of work challenges dominant stereotypes, presenting the participants in their photographs as fellow human beings bravely existing in the face of prejudice, intolerance and often violence. This book, now published in portuguese, presents the full breadth of Muholi's activist practice from their very first body of work Only Half the Picture, to their on-going series of self-portraits ʻSomnyama Ngonyamaʼ, as well as new essays and an interview with the artist.

The exhibition, laid out in chronological order and according to thematic focus, follows Muholi’s path since embracing activism in the early 2000s until the present day. With more than 200 photographs, this represents the largest retrospective of their career so far, and also serves to introduce Portuguese audiences to their work. Besides offering a broad overview of Muholi’s practice, the exhibition revisits key moments in the history of South Africa, from the dark years of Apartheid to the continuing struggle for equality and human rights. In Portugal, where our colonial legacy continues to be profoundly ingrained in society, this exhibition offers us a unique opportunity to reflect critically on the historical and cultural implications of discrimination and oppression, while reminding us of the urgent need to debate issues such as gender and cultural identity, collective memory and social justice.