Afro-pessimism v. Pieter Hugo

Afro-pessimism definition is “a critical framework that describes the ongoing effects of racism, colonialism, and historical processes of enslavement in the United States.” One of the central themes of Afro-pessimism is the redefinition of slavery as it has been explained to us. Slavery goes beyond the definition of forced labor; It encompasses the stripping of humanity and reidentifying an entire race of people as objectified property. Pieter Hugo is a non-black South African photographer who has a series of photographs that perpetuate this same narrative.

Pieter Hugo’s series of portraits titled “Nollywood” showcases the dehumanization of black people, specifically his portrait, Chris Nkulo and Patience Umeh. Enugu, Nigeria 2008. On the left is Chris Nkulo painted in dark tones with horn prosthetics and reddened eyes. His face is deadpan and his hands rest on his knees, fingernails sharpened like talons. On the right is Patience Umeh who is dressed in a bright floral green dress along with an extravagant head wrap, her red purse, and crossed hands staring intently at the photographer. The meaning of this portrait is argued to be about the working conditions of Nollywood. Through the lens of Afro-pessimism, it can also be argued that this is about the demonization of Africans and the mirroring of the past and modern-day colonist's viewpoints. The fence in the background alienates them from the rest of the community. Patience’s headwrap mirrors Chris’s horns, and the red in her purse reflects the same hue as Chris’s eyes. At first glance, Chris’s feet look like hooves, and Patience is adorned with modern sandals. These side-by-side comparisons even down to their deadpan expressions remove the humanization of the subjects and are an artistic representation of the afro pessimistic idea that black people are not recognized as human.

Anthology of Afro-pessimism: An introduction summarizes this ideal with “--- As such, they are not recognized as a social subject and are thus precluded from the category of “human”—inclusion in humanity being predicated on social recognition, volition, subjecthood, and the valuation of life. The slave, as an object, is socially dead, which means they are: 1) open to gratuitous violence, as opposed to violence contingent upon some transgression or crime; 2) natally alienated, their ties of birth not recognized and familial structures intentionally broken apart; 3) generally dishonored, or disgraced before any thought or action is considered.” The social death of a slave goes into their very being, as shown by Chris who is remodeled to look like Behemoth.

Pieter Hugo has unintentionally created a space for these ideas that are further explored in an interview with Frank B. Wilderson, III, by C.S. Soong, “Violence against the slave is integral to the production of that psychic space called social life. The repetitive nature of violence against the slave does not have the same type of utility that violence against the post-colonial subject has.” This violence is quiet and stares directly at you through the eyes of Chris and Patience. Their eyes stare through you and show the result of slavery through a photographic artistic view.