Love from Manenberg

A moving portrait of the people in Manenberg, South Africa

Love from Manenberg looks at life in Manenberg, South Africa, in particular the experiences of women and their children. The work makes room for complex narratives pushed aside by the media and shows the ways families look to the future and carry the joy, grief, and everyday realities of life in a community plagued by gang violence. Through fortitude and faith, they persevere and prosper.

Sarah Stacke first photographed Manenberg, a neighborhood of Cape Town, in June 2011. For over a decade, the women of the Lottering, Pietersen, and Adams families have shared their lives, showing the texture, unity, and comfort of their home. The title of the book reflects the love these women embody, but also describes the relationships the photographer has formed with them. They have become a part of the fabric of each other’s lives.

Sarah Stacke is a photojournalist and archive investigator based in Brooklyn, New York. Through long-term projects created in dialogue with people and communities, she seeks to share stories, often untold, that bring a solutions-focused balance to the narratives of underrepresented people and places.

Sarah received a master’s degree from Duke University. She is a faculty member at the International Center of Photography (ICP), and the author of the award-winning book, Photos Day or Night: The Archive of Hugh Mangum (Red Hook Editions/Jet Age Books, 2018).