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The Arts Intel Report

A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler
A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler

David Goldblatt: Strange Instrument

Feb 26 – Mar 28, 2021
540 W 25th St, New York, NY 10001, United States

“I was drawn not to the events of the time,” said the South African photographer David Goldblatt, who died in 2018 at the age of 87, “but to the quiet and commonplace where nothing ‘happened’ and yet all was contained and imminent.” Goldblatt was referring to the 50 years he spent exploring his home country, traipsing around Johannesburg with a camera at the ready. His photographs have a lot to say about the racism that permeated South African society, yet that wasn’t his primary goal. “I’m pegging. I’m walking around the city,” he said. “I’m learning the city, and trying to take photographs.” For this exhibition, the artist and activist Zanele Muholi, who was mentored by Goldblatt, has selected 60 prints that celebrate his powerful vision. —E.C.

David Goldblatt, “George and Sarah Manyane,” 1972 © David Goldblatt. Courtesy of Pace Gallery and Goodman Gallery.