Artists

Billy Monk was born in Johannesburg in 1937. He was a bouncer and self-taught photographer in 1960s Cape Town, where he captured the vibrant nightlife of the city’s underground clubs like The Catacombs. These venues, frequented by all races and sexual orientations, stood in stark contrast to the rigid apartheid system outside. His close relationships with the clubgoers enabled him to photograph them with striking intimacy.

Monk stopped photographing in 1969 and his work remained largely forgotten until his negatives were discovered by photographer Jac de Villiers in 1979. With Monk’s approval, de Villiers, supported by David Goldblatt, organized an exhibition at Johannesburg's Market Gallery in 1982. Tragically, Monk was shot and killed on his way to the show. Despite his untimely death, Monk’s photographs provide a rare, unfiltered glimpse into a distinctive period of Cape Town's history. His work has been featured in prominent exhibitions, including at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the International Center of Photography in New York, the Iziko South African National Gallery, and the Brighton Photo Biennial.