Acclaimed South African photographer Zanele Muholi (b.1972) first received international recognition in the 2000s for a body of portraits documenting the lives of Black LGBTQIA+ people in South African townships. Muholi’s desire is to challenge prejudiced attitudes by constructing a Black queer and trans visual history of South Africa. Activism is central to this endeavour as the artist seeks to empower others to resist the cultural limitations imposed on them by mainstream society. This intimate black-and-white photograph is from the self-portrait series ‘Somnyama Ngonyma’ (‘Hail the Dark Lioness’), which explores themes of racism, sexuality, and the lived experience of being Black. Muholi reclines naked on a bed while holding a mirror, which confronts the viewer with the photographer’s reflected gaze. As with other works in the series, the artist’s skin tone is digitally darkened to confront Eurocentric ideals of beauty and ‘misogynoir’ – a specific prejudice against Black women.