Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
For nearly six decades, the celebrated South African photographer David Goldblatt (1930-2018) documented the impact of apartheid on South Africa. As a white Jewish native of Johannesburg, he brought both an insider and outsider perspective to his country, which was dominated by a white Christian Afrikaner elite. And, although he viewed his work as a ‘dialogue’ between himself, his subjects and his fellow South Africans rather than an instrument of liberation, it carried a nuanced yet powerful critique of the contradictions and cruelties of apartheid. His non-commercial projects before apartheid’s fall in 1994 were shot only in monochrome, with Goldblatt finding colour to be ‘too sweet a medium to express the anger, disgust and fear’ of the era. Filmed during the final months of Goldblatt’s life, this short by the nonprofit organisation Art21 provides a glimpse into his unwavering career as a photographer. Portraying him as anti-censorship and intent on providing a detached and observational look at his country’s ever-changing landscape until the end, the film offers a worthy bookend to Goldblatt’s impressive body of work.
Video by Art21
Director: Ian Forster
video
Personality
A ‘dumpster archeologist’ reconstructs strangers’ stories via what they’ve discarded
14 minutes
video
Human rights and justice
An unarmed Indigenous group aims to protect their native lands in this stirring portrait
15 minutes
video
Art
In his poem ‘London’, William Blake crafted a bleak vision of the city he loved
9 minutes
video
Ageing and death
We’re not the only animals that appear to grieve. What are the implications?
6 minutes
video
Archaeology
How researchers finally solved the puzzle of the oldest known map of the world
18 minutes
video
Art
A prisoner in Guantánamo finds some escape in building intricate model ships
6 minutes
video
Meaning and the good life
A Japanese religious community makes an unlikely home in the mountains of Colorado
9 minutes
video
Sex and sexuality
From secret crushes to self-acceptance – a joyful chronicle of ‘old lesbian’ stories
29 minutes
video
Making
Forging a cello from pieces of wood demands its own form of virtuosity
27 minutes