Notes

The present lot is accompanied by a Goodman Gallery certificate of authenticity.

In 2012, twin brothers Hasan and Husain Essop, both graduates of the Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town, exhibited photographs of religious sites taken in Germany, Holland, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Senegal. Entitled Remembrance, the exhibition included this lot portraying the Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. This work bears out the dominant themes of their exhibition: religious faith and historical memory. Although grounded in documentary description – their series included photographs of sites inaccessible to non-believers – Remembrance included many scenes in which one or both of the brothers appear in the frame. Sometimes they are shown praying, at other times simply witnessing (as in this lot), and in one photograph (Guantanamo, Cape Town, South Africa, 2010) enacting outrage at the persecution of Muslims. This stunning architectural photograph subtly affirms the legitimate and playful presence of the duo as they journey the world as artists and observant Muslims. In a country where black and white race politics tend to dominate social discourse, the Essops’ work broadens the debate around identity. They are eloquent champions of South Africa’s overlooked Islamic traditions, which arrived in the country from across the Indian Ocean.

Hasan and Husain Essop, born and raised in Cape Town, graduated from the University of Cape Town’s Michaelis School of Fine Art in 2007, where they studied photography and printmaking. Twin brothers and collaborators, their work constitutes performance-based photographs that interrogate the notions of place, identity, and religion – particularly that of Islam in Western culture. As Muslims, the representation of the human form is forbidden. Therefore, the brothers place themselves in front of the camera, thus putting this burden solely on them.

In 2009, the Essops held a residency in Cuba that coincided with their participation in the Havana Biennale. They have exhibited widely, including at the Dakar Biennale (2010) and in Figures and Fictions: Contemporary South African Photography at London’s V&A Museum (2011). In 2014, they received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award. Their work forms part of several public collections, including The Walther Collection, The Iziko South African National Gallery, and the Deutsche and Standard Bank collections.

Provenance

Strauss & Co, Cape Town, 17 February 2018, lot 54.

Property of Collectors.

Exhibited

Goodman Gallery, Cape Town, Remembrance, 11 August to 15 September 2012.