Southern African Tribal Traditions

In 1973 Daniel left his home country of Mozambique for Brazil, spending seven years away, and in 1980 returned to Africa. On returning, out of a desire to understand the cultural traditions that surrounded him in his youth and early adulthood, he began documenting the Southern African tribal traditions of The Zulus, Vendas, Sothos, Xhosas, Tswanas, Ndebeles, Basutos and Shangaans.

At first conceived solely as photographic works, after years of reflecting on these images he sought to reconsider their presentation. The resulting works attempt to extract various features that he sees inherent to the images taken decades ago that are reflective of the cultures he spent time with.

The exhibition is a collection of collages made that attempt to reconstitute single images into abstractions that parallel the various infrastructures, art forms and ceremonial traditions of the everyday lives of these cultures. Currently a collection of four series of work, the first two simply exploring expressions of tribal life during the day, and the other those of the night. The third series is inspired by visions of Owls. Finally, 'Veil Series' is an attempt to evoke materials reminiscent of Daniel's youth, such as hessian sacks and mosquito nets. 

Artist bio

Daniel Tomé is a Mozambican artist who predominantly works in photography and photographic collage. After growing up in Mozambique, he lived in Brazil for three years. This was the inciting moment for documenting different cultures around the world for the next two decades. Daniel then moved to Europe, spending a few years in Paris and Brussels before returning to Africa, to live in South Africa. His time spent away from Africa gave him space to reflect on his relationship to the history and cultures in which he came to be and thus proved fertile ground for further photographic exploration on return.

In response to this, Daniel spent many years living and documenting the lives of various tribal cultures in Southern Africa. In 1990 Daniel moved with his family to Australia and since has worked as a commercial photographer in various capacities and has exhibited some of his photographic work from his explorations and experiences. Since then, he has expanded his artistic practice into a collage-based form where he has created his photography of tribal traditions as a way of reflecting on his relationship to his past and the cultures he was surrounded by.

Image: Daniel Tomé, Ntombie in Blue (detail), 2015, digital collage on canvas