Kamo le Spopo

Kamohelo Mahlatsi, 2019 (In collaboration with Sibusiso Dlongolo)

Kamo le Spopo interrogates the dominance of Western iconography in biblical representation, specifically the enduring image of Adam and Eve. Raised within a Christian framework, I internalized these figures through a visual tradition that largely excluded Blackness, shaping a distant and incomplete sense of identification. This project comes from a desire to reclaim that space of representation and to imagine these biblical figures through my own experience as a Black person.

 

I came up with the concept for Kamo le Spopo as a photographer, developing the poses, visual direction, and overall way I wanted the story to be portrayed. This time, however, I decided to place myself in front of the camera and become the subject of my own work. Because of this, I collaborated with Sibusiso Dlongolo, a director and photographer, to help bring the images into existence. I gave Sibusiso the direction for each image, including how I wanted the subjects positioned, how the shots should be composed and framed, and how the photographs should communicate the ideas within my brief. His role allowed me to step away from the camera while still remaining closely involved in the visual construction of the work.

 

Positioning myself as Adam alongside my collaborator as Eve, the series reimagines the creation narrative through a Black lens. The work is performative, restaging key moments such as the Fall, while situating the figures within a pastoral landscape that echoes the Garden of Eden as described in the Book of Genesis. Through this reconstruction, the project challenges the visual traditions I grew up with and creates an alternative way of seeing ourselves within a sacred narrative.

 

Visual continuity through shared cornrows, mirrored adornment, and coordinated styling emphasizes unity and intimacy, foregrounding a deliberate representation of Black love. This gesture is both aspirational and corrective, shaped by a personal history in which images of Black people occupying these kinds of sacred and intimate spaces were largely absent. The figures remain inseparable throughout the series, embodying a sense of oneness and connection.

 

The title, drawn from our names in Sesotho, asserts authorship and specificity. We are not Adam and Eve, but Kamo and Spopo. By naming ourselves, we move away from the identities imposed by the original narrative and instead create something that belongs to us. Kamo le Spopo becomes a living, localized mythology that affirms our presence, identity, intimacy, and right to be seen within sacred narratives.

 

At its core, Kamo le Spopo is about reclaiming representation. It is an attempt to place Blackness within a story that I grew up seeing through a predominantly Western visual lens, while also creating an image of Black love, connection, and spirituality that feels personal and familiar to me.

 

Kamohelo Mahlatsi