Jodi Bieber
Dear Jo’burg
For many it would be hard to imagine taking time, at this difficult moment in our history, to write a love letter to you ;
Jo’burg, Jozi, Egoli, The City of Gold, The City of Trees. You have been home to me for close on fifty five years. Admittedly, there were the almost five years when I ventured out to live in Paris and then London. Jo’burg has formed a great part of who I am. Home is home and so I returned. Right now I worry about you : the impact of Covid, the sea of poverty we float in, the slow collapse of your infrastructure, the crime, corruption, inflation, the ever-rising cost of living, the deterioration of your environment and the stagnation of your economy make me very sad.
But then you have the trees, the blue skies, the kind climate, the energised atmosphere – and the people. Your people with their resilience and their undying ability to always mak eanother plan. These are the priceless ingredients that make my Jo’burg.
This body of work is both a homage to you the city I have loved as home for my whole life and a protest against the accelerating decay of this miraculous place.
I am photographing you from the sky. Places I remember from my youth, places I frequent now, places where personal memories resonate powerfully with your rich history. Why the sky ? I like its serenity, calmness and quietness. I share space with the birds. This shift in perspective reminds me that there are many ways to see the one you love.
My decision to photograph these scenes in rose-tinted light in the late afternoon towards dusk and in the early morning sunrise allows for a colour palette that is soft on the eye. It hides the squalor and degradation that lies below, within the shadows. The harshest structures have softer contours and no-go areas are quietly at peace from up there in the sky. I have created a landscape of you my city without the noise and the hustling of your people. You have been wiped clean, afresh new canvas for our people to imagine, re-imagine, dream and respond. Making the impossible possible for you our city… Johannesburg.
Jo’burg, Jozi, Egoli, The City of Gold – our City of Trees.
About Jodi Bieber
Jodi Bieber (b. 1966 Johannesburg, Gauteng) trained at the Market Photo Workshop where she completed six weeks of practically guided study before embarking on a career as a professional photographer.
Her practice is deeply rooted in South Africa, and engages with the political, social, and economic conditions of contemporary times. Her lived experiences have significantly shaped her photographic choices and approach. Central themes in her work explore questions of gender, politics, and identity, often challenging dominant narratives and mainstream representations.
Her photographic projects have been exhibited widely, both locally and internationally, across museums, galleries, festivals, and cultural institutions. She is the recipient of numerous international awards, including the Premier Award at World Press Photo in 2010 for her photograph of Bibi Aisha, an image contained in a 2010 essay about Afghan women and the return of the Taliban. The image received global attention, appearing on the cover of TIME Magazine and being listed by CNN and The New York Times among the top 100 most influential images of the previous decade.
Her published monographs include Between Dogs and Wolves – Growing up with South Africa (1996), Soweto (2010), Real Beauty (2014), Between Darkness and Light: Selected Works – South Africa 1994–2010, and Francois: Lockdown in times of the Coronavirus (2020).
Her photographs are held in major international collections, including The Artur Walther Collection, The François Pinault Collection, The Oppenheimer Collection, the Johannesburg Art Gallery, Iziko Museums, and the Jean Paul Blachère Foundation.
Bieber is dedicated to mentoring and teaching the next generation of photographers. She lectures and has led workshops locally and internationally. In recognition of her contribution to photography, she was named as one of the Hundred Heroines in 2018. She is represented by Gallery F in Cape Town and the Howard Greenberg Gallery in New York.