On May 16, 2024, Lebohang Kganye was announced as the recipient of the prestigious Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize. The South African artist was awarded the £30,000 prize for her exhibition "Haufi nyana? I've Come to Take You Home" initially displayed at Foam in Amsterdam from February 17 to May 21, 2023.
Deutsche Börse Photography annual prize recognises artists whose work has made a significant contribution to contemporary photography over the past year. Kganye's multifaceted practice explores personal and collective histories in South Africa, drawing from oral narratives, fictional texts, and her own family stories.
Kganye's vast, experimental installations create a space between memory and fantasy. She incorporates silhouettes, cut-outs, puppets, shadows, and ghosts into her work, enacting scripts that blend family histories and South African literature. The exhibition's title, "Haufi nyana?" which means "too close?" in Sesotho, reflects the dialogue between the viewer and the artist, touching on themes of heritage, identity, and the complexities of the South African experience.
In Kganye's words, "It's an honour to win the Prize and to have my name alongside this year's shortlisted artists, whose practices are critically engaging the urgent issues of our time."
The jury praised Kganye's skilful blending of images and words, which opens new ways of understanding and contributes to the process of decolonization. "Lebohang Kganye’s innovative use of photography brings together past and present to explore the political through deeply personal stories of her own family and history. Sometimes theatrical, always experimental, her use of photography and her own archives is powerful and refreshing," Clare Grafik, acting director of The Photographers' Gallery who led the jury, says.
Through June 2, 2024, Kganya's artwork will be showcased at The Photographers' Gallery alongside those of the shortlisted artists: Hrair Sarkissian, Gauri Gill & Rajesh Vangad, and Valie Export.