The statue of a man can be seen being lifted in the air behind her. The image of Cecil Rhodes' statue at the University of Cape Town was removed due to the spirit of the #RhodesMustFall movement. Msezane was studying for a master's degree in Fine Arts at the university when the students called for the statue to come down because of his legacy of racism. She had a recurring dream that haunted her around the time the protest movement began. The statue of Cecil John Rhodes was removed at the culmination of a month of protests by students.
Msezane was a sacred Zimbabwean bateleur eagle who embodied atop the plinth. The ancient city of Great Zimbabwe had carvings of eight of the birds in green-gray soapstone. The site fell into disrepair and six statues were subsequently looted and one was given to Cecil Rhodes. It is at the former home of Rhodes at the Groote Shuur estate in Cape Town. There have been calls for her to come home, but they have been denied.
Msezane says that she accepted the call when she heard about the death of Rhodes.
After the sculpture of Rhodes fell, Msezane stayed on top of her platform for another 30 minutes. It was important for Chapungu to be present so that we could see ourselves in her, and not in our history of subjugation and dispossession.
The image is on display in London as part of the South London Gallery's exhibition "Acts of Resistance: Photography, Feminisms and the Art of Protest" which takes a journey through female-led resistance around the world. Would I be pushed over?
She said the work was pretty strenuous and took its toll. She was scared at the beginning and had to rest for 10 before starting again. The statue of Cecil John Rhodes was removed from Cape Town University.
If the police took me away, what would happen to me?
She was shaking and her limbs were tired.
Msezane continued on with her life despite the international attention her work received. She was being targeted for her involvement with the movement because of her work. The system still finds ways to oppress you even though a work like that can give you a voice.
She sometimes fears that the meaning of the piece is lost, with the focus being on Rhodes and not the symbol of Chapungu who has become a beacon of hope for many.
The work inspired Msezane to think about how we can help women around the world. She uses her art as a tool for change by donating profits from the sales of her work to charity.
Msezane was a creative from a young age, but she did not expect to become an artist. There was a performance titled "So Long a Letter" by Sethembile Msezane at the African Renaissance Monument.
She set off to study fine arts at the University of Cape Town because she didn't think she would be able to be an artist. Africans are not being producers of their own work but being faceless and anonymous.
Msezane was inspired to think about what the city had to say about black women. Msezane would use the day off from her job as an arts administrator to stage performances in the city. She performed as Lady Liberty on Freedom Day and Rosie the Riveter on Worker's Day. Msezane left her day job and started practicing full-time as an artist.
Msezane wants visitors to walk in with a sense of wonder and to let that wonder take over their senses. Let them view the image and go where they need to.