Zara Julius

Zara Julius is a multidisciplinary artist, social researcher and vinyl selector, with a background in social anthropology and photography. Her work is concerned with the relationships between aesthetics and culture, African futures, and the varying paradoxes that emerge in the interplay of identity, faith, urbanity, migration, race, and desire in Africa and the African diaspora. She is passionate about creating links throughout the global south.



Pronouns: Her/She
Practice: Photographer, Filmmaker & Social Researcher
Location: South Africa

What do you find most inspiring about the art/world right now?

I'm really inspired when I see POC artists from different geographical contexts collaborating with each other across fraught national boundaries, and creating spaces (both physical and conceptual) for their narratives to co-exist for that moment. That really excites me!

How would you say Johannesburg expresses itself?

Johannesburg is a really complicated city. It's a city of constant paradox. I've lived here for most of my life and the city still surprises me. It's in constant flux, and I guess if you're not careful, the city will swallow you whole. It's probably the key destination for migrants, both internally amongst South Africans, and amongst other African nationals on the African continent. It's through these people - those that have taken a leap of faith in even trying to start a life here - that the city expresses itself.

What do you want to convey to the rest of the world?

That our stories and life-worlds are necessarily nuanced, and therefore only we can do them justice. This thing of complete outsiders telling the stories of queer POC, especially those in Africa and the global south, needs to stop. It's not okay.

Tell us about a creative (queer POC) the world should be paying attention to.

Elle Rose van der Burg