How Ernest Cole, S. Africa’s first Black photojournalist, chronicled Apartheid’s inhumanity

Ernest Levi Cole, South Africa’s first black photojournalist, wrote this in his stunning photographic book, House of Bondage, in 1967. At just 27 years old, Cole published this extraordinary account, subtitled ‘A South African black man exposes in his own pictures and words the bitter life of his homeland today’, which led to his forced exile, as a banned man, to the United States and Europe, never to return home.

Cole was born near Pretoria in 1940. At 18, he started working as an assistant to German photographer Jürgen Schadeberg. By 1961, he had become a freelance photographer for influential South African publications, capturing the poverty and despair of his people. As a dropout protesting the Bantu Education System, which segregated students, Cole was especially concerned with the condition of children denied a proper education. Under the Bantu Education Act, Black children were required to attend government schools that focused on training them for manual labour and menial jobs.

Exile, Homelessness, Depression

Haitian filmmaker Raoul Peck’s documentary, Ernest Cole: Lost and Found, which shared L’Oeil d’Or Prize at Cannes this year, and made its India premiere as the opening film at the six-day International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (it kicked off on Friday, July 26), poignantly explores the life and legacy of Cole through his own words — recreated in Academy Award-nominated actor LaKeith Lee Stanfield’s superbly modulated voice — testimonies, and his photographs that were rediscovered in a Swedish bank in 2017. Stanfield’s powerful narration adds depth and emotion, making the political and personal insights on the history of apartheid resonate with contemporary audiences. 

The documentary portrays the journey of this fragile but rebellious visual chronicler, highlighting the loneliness and despair that ultimately led him to abandon photography, which was his only passion. Through his lens, Cole captured the struggles, resilience, and daily lives of the country’s oppressed Black population, offering a profound visual testimony to their experiences.

The film essentially chronicles a journey from 1967, when Cole published House of Bondage, to 2017, when his lost negatives were discovered in Sweden. It not only honours the photographer’s work but also serves as a stark reminder of the enduring impact of Apartheid, preserving the memory of those who lived through it and ensuring their stories continue to be told. Peck wrote the film’s script by blending his own writing with testimonials from Cole’s friends and family.

Through this narrative, the documentary delves into the full scope of Cole’s physical, emotional, and psychological journey following the release of his groundbreaking book, House of Bondage. By interweaving personal insights with Cole’s own words, the film offers a comprehensive exploration of the challenges he faced throughout his life.

Cole’s New York life, part of a project (looking at Black communities and cultures in the United States) funded by the Ford Foundation, is marked by sequencing his street photography, by which the director attempts to explore Cole’s political thoughts, which are tinged with pessimism rooted in his depression that ultimately led to his homelessness.  

A Life Cut Short At 49

Between 1969 and 1971, Cole frequently travelled to Sweden, immersing himself in the local art scene and collaborating with the Tiofoto collective, where he showcased his photographic work. Despite his success and recognition in between, Cole’s life took a downward turn since 1972. He stopped working as a photographer and lost control over his vast archive of negatives. This period marked a significant decline, as he faced severe personal challenges, including bouts of homelessness. Tragically, Cole’s life was cut short when he succumbed to pancreatic cancer at the age of 49 in 1990.

Decades later, a remarkable discovery brought Cole’s legacy back into the spotlight. In 2017, more than 60,000 of his long-lost negatives were found in a Stockholm bank vault, having been missing for over 40 years. The rediscovery of these negatives has reignited interest in Cole’s work, offering a renewed appreciation for his contributions to photography and his poignant documentation of the struggles and resilience of South Africa’s Black population under Apartheid. The documentary, centred on the discovery of Cole’s photographs, weaves together this visual treasure trove with the statements and narrative provided by Cole’s nephew, Leslie Matlaisane, offering a deeply personal and historical insight into Cole’s life and work. 

Peck is no stranger to Indian festival audiences. His previous films, particularly Lumumba (2000) and The Young Karl Marx (2017), have won considerable acclaim at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) and the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), earning him a dedicated following in India, especially in Kerala and Kolkata. This audience, mostly left- leaning, appreciates his portrayals of historical figures, especially those who have fought for various causes. With Cole, he does not disappoint his constituency. Young Karl Marx was screened at IFFI in 2017; Ernest Cole has been met with enthusiasm by the Thiruvananthapuram crowd. Peck’s approach to Cole’s life slightly differs from his treatment of Marx and Engels and bears striking similarities to Lumumba.

Many film critics believe that Peck missed the opportunity to thoroughly explore the impact of Cole’s works from the 1960s and the circumstances that led to his exile. The mystery of his negatives being discovered also remains unexplored.