Alice Mann: Drummies

Arts Tribune

2 months ago

Alice Mann: Drummies
20th September – 30th November 2024
David Hill Gallery
345 Ladbroke Grove
London W10 6HA

Celebrated South African photographer Alice Mann unveils the first UK exhibition of Drummies – her seminal, Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize-winning series of South African female drum majorette teams. Now based in London, Mann presents her first London solo exhibition at David Hill Gallery in September, featuring previously unseen photographs from the series.

Alice spent four years photographing girls in Western Cape and Gauteng schools. Her joyful portraits capture the strength, confidence, and pride that is vital in communities where opportunities for young women are severely limited. Alice explains, “Drummies is part of my ongoing work exploring notions of femininity and empowerment in modern society.”

Top L-R Caitlin Engelbrecht, Cheri-Leigh Burger, Jordyn Smit and Britnay Engelbrecht Helderkruin Primary School Majorettes, Roodepoort, Johannesburg, 2019, Dr. Van Der Ross Primary School Majorettes, Belhar, Cape Town, 2017. Bottom L-R Eshmeal Ahrens, Lauren Lee Hendriks, Anushka Keteldas and Bussisiwe Mnqumevu Elgin Saints Majorettes, Grabouw, Theewaterskloof, 2018, The Helderkruin Primary School Majorettes, Blue Downs, Cape Town, 2018
Image of courtesy of the artist

Alice Mann: Drummies — Top L-R Caitlin Engelbrecht, Cheri-Leigh Burger, Jordyn Smit and Britnay Engelbrecht Helderkruin Primary School Majorettes, Roodepoort, Johannesburg, 2019, Dr. Van Der Ross Primary School Majorettes, Belhar, Cape Town, 2017. Bottom L-R Eshmeal Ahrens, Lauren Lee Hendriks, Anushka Keteldas and Bussisiwe Mnqumevu Elgin Saints Majorettes, Grabouw, Theewaterskloof, 2018, The Helderkruin Primary School Majorettes, Blue Downs, Cape Town, 2018
Image of courtesy of the artist

In 2018, when Mann was just 27 years old, Drummies won the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize. Mann had entered four images from Drummies, which led to the first time a series had won in the prize’s history.

As a result, all four winning images were exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, they then won the Grand Prix of the Jury for photography at Hyères in2019, and Alice’s Drummies were nominated for the 2019 Sony World Photography Awards and consequently exhibited at Somerset House.

“There are so many images coming from a particular viewpoint, which is often a male, Eurocentric, westernised viewpoint – it’s important that we make this broader and more inclusive.” – Alice Mann

See also

Siphithemba Mshengu Curro Thatchfield Primary School Majorettes, Centurion, Tshwane, 2018
Image of courtesy of the artist

From 19 September, the David Hill Gallery presents the first opportunity to see Drummies exhibited in the UK and includes previously unseen images from the series. Produced in association with Afronova Gallery, Johannesburg.

ALICE MANN (b.1991) is a South African photographic artist whose intimate portraiture essays explore notions of picture making as an act of collaboration. She aims to create images that empower her subjects and creates projects over extended periods, allowing for engaged and nuanced representations.

Top L-R Mpho Mothabi and Mia Kuun, Helderkruin Primary School Majorettes, Roodepoort, Johannesburg, 2019, Tanique Williams Hottentots-Holland High School Majorettes, Goodwood, Cape Town, 2018, Bottom L-R Kimlynne Joachams Elgin Saints Majorettes, Grabouw, Theewaterskloof, 2018, Zoey Harris Sophiatown Majorettes Club, Sophiatown, Johannesburg, 2018
Image of courtesy of the artist

Her work has been exhibited internationally at numerous group shows at Red Hook Labs (NYC), Unseen Photo Fair (Amsterdam), The National Portrait Gallery and Somerset House (London), Addis Foto Fest (Addis Ababa), the International Centre of Photography (NYC) as well as at art fairs such as 1:54 London, and Paris Photo Fair. Drummies by Alice Mann was published by GOST Books in November 2021. Mann’s personal and commissioned work has been published internationally including The Guardian, The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, Artsy, The British Journal of Photography, and National Geographic.

Alice Mann: Drummies opens on the 20th of September, 2024 until the 30th of November, 2024 at David Hill Gallery

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