Robben Island as You’ve Never Seen It Before
- Artist: Santu Mofokeng
- Date: c.2002, printed 2011
- Medium: Photograph, gelatin silver print on paper
- Dimensions: image: 298 x 450 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
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About this artwork
This is the “Robben Island as You’ve Never Seen It Before” by Santu Mofokeng. It’s a black‑and‑white gelatin‑silver print, captured in 2002 and printed in 2011 as part of his long‑running Billboards series. Mofokeng uses the image to expose how advertising dominates the landscape of South African townships. The title itself—bold and declarative—sets up a stark contrast with the smaller sign that appears in the foreground: “Sex is sex: show me the money.” That line shows how consumerist slogans promise a better life, while the real scene underneath is one of ordinary people navigating post‑apartheid reality. He reminds us that what used to be “freedom” or “democracy” could land you in jail; today those words simply send you to a shopping mall. The photograph’s composition forces you to look at the billboard and the people side by side, turning the wall into a social document. It’s a visual critique of power, advertising, and the ongoing tension between state messages and everyday lived experience.
See it in person
Robben Island as You’ve Never Seen It Before is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
