Africa Is a Country

The Minister of Finance

The Minister of Finance

By
Sean Jacobs

“The Minister of Finance,” one of a series of over the top, mock portraits by Zimbabwean-born, Johannesburg-based artist  Kudzanai Chiurai. The work was first exhibited as “Dying to be Men” and is currently on show in London (at the Victoria & Alibert Museum as part of a big show on contemporary South African photography) as “The Parliament.” Below is the PR from the Victoria & Albert. You can also see the full series on the website of his South African gallery’s website:

His satirical series The Parliament depicts the fictitious characters of an imaginary government cabinet in a parody of media representations of masculinity and political power. The series draws upon the conventions of African studio portraiture, dramatised magazine features, hip-hop, film and fashion as well as the story lines, stereotyped characters and plots of soap operas.

Here’s the Minister of Education:

And, the Minister of Defense:

Further Reading

Writing while black

The film adaptation of Percival Everett’s novel ‘Erasure’ leaves little room to explore Black middle-class complicity in commodifying the traumas of Black working-class lives.

The Mogadishu analogy

In Gaza and Haiti, the specter of another Mogadishu is being raised to alert on-lookers and policymakers of unfolding tragedies. But we have to be careful when making comparisons.

Kwame Nkrumah today

New documents looking at British and American involvement in overthrowing Kwame Nkrumah give us pause to reflect on his legacy, and its resonances today.