On Other Poleis: A Visual Essay

Cover of Minor Cosmopolitan: Thinking Art, Politics, and the Universe Together Otherwise, edited by Zairong Xiang. Featuring On Other Poleis: A Visual Essay by Sikho Siyotula-Siegemund.

On Other Poleis: A Visual Essay.

On Other Poleis is a visual essay that examines the cultural politics of representation in the visualisation of Southern African Late Iron Age settlements. The images visually engage with how these settlements have been depicted in archaeological, anthropological, and historical research, questioning what and who is made visible in these visualisations. The work further interrogates the forms of materiality and spatiality that are pictured and performed, exploring how these representations are constructed and what effects they have on those who encounter them. Through this inquiry, On Other Poleis attempts to highlight the power dynamics embedded in visual narratives of the past and their ongoing impact on contemporary understandings of space and history.

The project was exhibited at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, during the Minor Cosmopolitan Weekend from the 6th to the 8th of December, 2018. The visual essay appears in Chapter 2 of Minor Cosmopolitan: Thinking Art, Politics, and the Universe Together Otherwise, edited by Zairong Xiang.