Bob Gosani

Provenance

Aspire, Online, Aspire X PLP/ African Photography Auction, 27 July 2021, lot 87.

The Georgina Jaffee Hair Matters Collection.

Notes

Selected by Curatorial Voice: Jared Leite.

The present lot, photographed by Bob Gosani, features the famed nightclub singer and actress Dolly Rathebe. Born in Sophiatown in 1928, she was discovered by a talent scout in 1948, which launched a long and fruitful career. She toured with various bands, including the Manhattan Stars, the Harlem Swingsters and the Elite Swingsters, and as an actress she starred in Alf Herbert’s African Jazz and Variety Show and toured with the South African production of King Kong: An African Jazz (1959). After Sophiatown was destroyed by the apartheid government, she found it more difficult to perform and lived in Port Elizabeth, Durban and Cape Town before settling in Mabopane near Pretoria in 1971, appearing on stage only occasionally. Her last recording was with the reunited Elite Swingsters in 1991.¹

Rathebe graced the cover of Drum Magazine several times, often in the West African edition. For her first cover with the magazine in 1957, she was photographed by Jürgen Schadeberg at a mine dump in Johannesburg. At the time, the Immorality Act, an apartheid-era law prohibiting sexual relations and marriages between people of different racial groups, was strictly enforced, and both she and Schadeberg were arrested by apartheid police for possibly breaking the law.²

The present lot, however, was photographed by Bob Gosani, one of South Africa’s most important photojournalists. Gosani joined Drum Magazine in the mid-1950s and quickly became known for his striking portraits and keen eye for capturing the vibrancy of township life. He documented the music, fashion and daily experiences of black South Africans, producing images that combined visual elegance with social commentary. His work often highlighted the humanity, dignity and style of his subjects while subtly challenging the oppressive structures of apartheid. Gosani’s photographs of figures like Dolly Rathebe not only immortalised cultural icons but also created a visual record of black urban life during a period of profound social and political change.³

In the present lot, Dolly Rathebe gazes over her shoulder, looking directly at the viewer. The caption for the image reads, “DOLLY! Her strange life and loves begins this month.” On the verso of the cover, the magazine reveals that Rathebe’s real name is Josephine Malatsi and that “Dolly” is a name she borrowed from a schoolmate, the daughter of Mr J R Rathebe.⁴

^1. Nokuthula Mazibuko Msimang (2023) Clarke’s Bookshop, Dolly Rathebe, queen of African jazz, blues & mbaqanga, online, accessed 13 November 2025.

^2. Glenda Nevill (2011) The Media Online, Happy 60th birthday, DRUM magazine!, online, accessed 13 November 2025.

^3. Zingi Mkefa (2010) Sunday Times, Making of a lensman and an activist, online, accessed 13 November 2025.

^4. Unknown author (no date) African Pictures, Drum Magazine cover, West Africa edition, April 1957, online, accessed 13 November 2025.