David Goldblatt : no ulterior motive
(Book)

Published on the occasion of an exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, December 2, 2023-March 25, 2024; Fundación MAPFRE, Madrid, Spain, May 23-August 25, 2024; Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, February 21-June 22, 2025.

This catalogue features images and texts by contemporary photographers and scholars, many of whom were mentored by Goldblatt, including Zanele Muholi and Sabelo Mlangeni. Some write on Goldblatt's 2019 photographs, while others discuss his influence on their own work.

"Born into a family of Lithuanian Jews who emigrated to South Africa, Goldblatt focused much of his work on Johannesburg, the city where he lived for most of his life. His relative freedom to move within a society bitterly divided by racial segregation influenced the critical perspective of his work. In a church facade, down a mineshaft, through the exchange of glances between a passing man and woman, Goldblatt recorded the uneven application and reception of South Africa's political values and beliefs. The highly descriptive captions he wrote for his photographs--which grew increasingly detailed over time--express his incisive attention to the country's land, people, and history." - host institution's website.