South Africa to the World – Young Photographers from the township capture Jozi’s Story, one lens at a time
From township streets to European galleries, six young South African photographers are carrying Johannesburg’s raw and unfiltered stories to international audiences. Armed with their cameras, each will share their city seen through their unique and powerful lenses.
By CityLife Arts writer
Johannesburg is a city of many contrasts – resilience and hardship, chaos and beauty, survival and reinvention. It is this layered identity that six emerging South African photographers are capturing and carrying onto the world stage.
Through powerful images, these emerging powerhouses have transformed the city’s struggles, victories, and overlooked voices into visual stories that resonate beyond South Africa – capturing not only the city’s spirit, but reclaiming its story too.
All six photographers are part of the Of Soul and Joy (OSJ) project, a Thokoza-based mentorship initiative byRubisMécénat and Easigas. This international feat is a huge milestone for OSJ, which has, since 2012, been empowering young South Africans to use photography as a tool for storytelling, self-expression, and social change.
From 11 September to 21 December 2025, the Fondation A (A Foundation)museum in Brussels, Belgiumwill showcase the work of six OSJ artists SibusisoBheka, JabulaniDhlamini, ThembinkosiHlatshwayo, VuyoMabheka, XolaniNgubeni, andZwelibanziZwaneat the What’s the Word? Johannesburg! exhibition.
Curated by Emilie Demon from the Afronova Gallery (a Johannesburg-based Pan African gallery for modern and contemporary art), the exhibition draws inspiration from the 1975 song Johannesburg by American jazz poet and singer Gil Scott-Heron’s, and weaves together overarching themes of identity, transformation, resilience, and vibrancy. Broader motifs include historical trauma, post-apartheid aspirations, vulnerability in love and fatherhood, and the silenced voices of marginalised communities – all a visual reflection of Johannesburg’s complex legacy.
Meanwhile in Switzerland, VuyoMabheka and ThembinkosiHlatshwayo will also join 60 other international artists as they present their work at the Gen Z (Shaping a New Gaze)exhibition at Photo Elysée in Lausanne(18 September 2025 to 01 February 2026) – exploring the challenges and visions of their generation.
“This moment is about more than just international recognition,” says Jabulani Dhlamini, OSJ Project Manager. “It is about young South Africans reclaiming their stories, creating new archives, and bringing these realities of Johannesburg to the world stage.”
At home, OSJ will celebrate these achievements as well with its 5th OSJ bi-annual Photo Festivaltaking place on 18 October 2025 at Buhlebuzile High School in Thokoza.
From the pavements of Thokoza to the cultural capitals of Europe, the OSJ photographers are proving that their city – in all its contradictions – belongs on global cultural stages.
