Ernest Cole

*1940-1990 / South Africa

Works

Solo exhibitions

Black America Unseen

Goodman NY, New York (US)
18 Jun 2026 – 24 Jul 2026
House of Bondage

KYOCERA Museum of Art, Kyôto (JP)
18 Apr 2026 – 17 May 2026
The True America

Photographs by Ernest Cole

The Minneapolis Institute, Minneapolis (US)
1 Feb 2025 – 22 Jun 2025
House of Bondage

Vintage Prints from the Ernest Cole Family Trust - Part II

MAGNUM Gallery, Paris (FR)
22 Jan 2025 – 26 Apr 2025
House of Bondage

Vintage works from the Ernest Cole Family Trust - Part 3

Goodman Gallery Cape Town, Cape Town (ZA)
18 Jan 2025 – 8 Mar 2025
House of Bondage

Vintage works from the Ernest Cole Family Trust - Part 1

Goodman London, London (GB)
14 Nov 2024 – 18 Jan 2025
A Lens in Exile

Autograph ABP, London (GB)
13 Jun 2024 – 12 Oct 2024
House of Bondage

Photographers' Gallery, London (GB)
14 Jun 2024 – 22 Sep 2024
House of Bondage

Deutsche Börse, Eschborn (DE)
2 Jun 2023 – 17 Sep 2023
House of Bondage

foam Fotografiemuseum, Amsterdam (NL)
27 Jan 2023 – 14 Jun 2023
House of Bondage

Tate Modern, London (GB)
1 Feb 2022 – 19 Jul 2022
Ernest Cole: Photographer

Grey Art Gallery, NYU, New York (US)
3 Sep 2014 – 6 Dec 2014
ERNEST COLE - PHOTOGRAPHER

Preus Museum, Horten (NO)
19 Jan 2014 – 1 Jun 2014
Photographer

Fowler Museum at UCLA, Los Angeles (US)
7 Apr 2013 – 7 Jul 2013
The Photographer

Hasselblad Center, Göteborg (SE)
12 Jan 2012 – 23 Apr 2012
The Photographer

SANG Iziko Museum - South African Nation, Cape Town (ZA)
25 Feb 2011 – 30 Apr 2011
The Photographer

JAG Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg (ZA)
19 Sep 2010 – 21 Nov 2010

Group

Photography and the Black Arts Movement, 1955–1985

Mississippi Museum of Art, Los Angeles (US)
25 Jul 2026 – 8 Nov 2026

with Billy Abernathy, Harry Adams, Raphael Albert, Ralph Arnold, Anthony Barboza, James Barnor, Romare Bearden, Dawoud Bey, Kwame Brathwaite, Dwight Carter, Roland Charles, Albert V. Chong …
Aperture Loves New York

Aperture, New York (US)
18 Sep 2026 – 1 Nov 2026

with Diane Arbus, Tina Barney, Dawoud Bey, Sara Cwynar, Awol Erizku, Robert Frank, Lee Friedlander, Nan Goldin, Ethan James Green, Justine Kurland, Gillian Laub, Deana Lawson …
Photography and the Black Arts Movement, 1955–1985

The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (US)
24 Feb 2026 – 14 Jun 2026

with Billy Abernathy, Harry Adams, Raphael Albert, Ralph Arnold, Anthony Barboza, James Barnor, Romare Bearden, Dawoud Bey, Kwame Brathwaite, Dwight Carter, Roland Charles, Albert V. Chong …
Photography and the Black Arts Movement, 1955–1985

National Gallery of Art, Washington (US)
21 Sep 2025 – 4 Jan 2026

with Billy Abernathy, Harry Adams, Raphael Albert, Ralph Arnold, Anthony Barboza, James Barnor, Romare Bearden, Dawoud Bey, Kwame Brathwaite, Dwight Carter, Roland Charles, Albert V. Chong …
When Works Meet

Stevenson, Cape Town (ZA)
7 Dec 2024 – 8 Feb 2025

with Jane Alexander, Zander Blom, Rotimi Fani-Kayode, David Goldblatt, Simon Gush, Pieter Hugo, Moshekwa Langa, Sabelo Mlangeni, Paulo Nazareth, Frida Orupabo, Jo Ractliffe, Robin Rhode …
Ukuzilanda, Homegoing

Magnum Gallery, London (GB)
4 Oct 2023 – 15 Oct 2023

with Lindokuhle Sobekwa, Mikhael Subotzky
Not all realisms

Photography, Africa, and the long 1960s

The Smart Museum of Art, Chicago (US)
23 Feb 2023 – 9 Jul 2023

with James Barnor, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Peter Magubane, Malick Sidibe, Paul Strand
Against the Grain

Photography from South Africa and the United States

Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg (ZA)
18 Mar 2023 – 15 Apr 2023

with David Goldblatt, Ruth Motau, Ming Smith, Lindokuhle Sobekwa
THE BLACK TRIANGLE

Photographs of the civil rights and anti-racist movements in the UK, USA and South Africa

Atlas Gallery, London (GB)
7 Oct 2022 – 3 Dec 2022

with Bob Adelman, Eve Arnold, Ian Berry, Vanley Burke, Pogus Caesar, Bruce Davidson, Doris Adelaide Derby, Neil Kenlock, Hiroji Kubota, Danny Lyon, Constantine Manos, Charlie Phillips …
African Cosmologies: Redux

FotoFest Biennial 2022

FotoFest, Houston (US)
24 Sep 2022 – 6 Nov 2022

with Faisal Abdu'allah, Akinbode Akinbiyi, Helene A. Amouzou, Sammy Baloji, James Barnor, Bruno Boudjelal, Edson Chagas, Jamal Cyrus, Monica de Miranda, Jean Depara, Laura El-Tantawy, Rotimi Fani-Kayode …
AND COUNTING

JAG Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg (ZA)
23 May 2019 – 14 Jul 2019

with Nicholas Hlobo, Ranjith Kally, Sam Nhlengethwa
The Evidence of Things Not Seen

JAG Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg (ZA)
11 Nov 2016 – 15 May 2017

with Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Gabrielle Goliath, Ranjith Kally, Nandipha Mntambo, Mohau Modisakeng, Santu Mofokeng, Zanele Muholi, Sam Nhlengethwa, Tracey Rose, Berni Searle, Mary Sibande
South Africa in Apartheid and After

SF Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco (US)
1 Dec 2012 – 5 Mar 2013

with David Goldblatt, Billy Monk
Everything Was Moving: Photography from the 60s and 70s

Barbican Art Gallery , London (GB)
13 Sep 2012 – 13 Jan 2013

with Larry Burrows , Bruce Davidson, William Eggleston, David Goldblatt, Graciela Iturbide, Boris Mikhailov, Sigmar Polke, Malick Sidibe, Raghubir Singh, Shomei Tomatsu, LI Zhensheng
Rise and Fall of Apartheid: Photography and the Bureaucracy of Everyday Life

ICP Center of Photography, New York (US)
14 Sep 2012 – 6 Jan 2013

with Jane Alexander, Omar Badsha, David Goldblatt, Hans Haacke, William Kentridge, Peter Magubane, Gideon Mendel, Sabelo Mlangeni, Santu Mofokeng, Sam Nzima, Adrian Piper, Jo Ractliffe …
Photography Rotation 8

MoMA Museum Modern Art, New York (US)
13 May 2011 – 12 Mar 2012

with Berenice Abbott, Robert Adams, Ansel Adams, Robert Adamson, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Lola Alvarez Bravo, Emmy Andriesse, Diane Arbus, Eugene Atget, Richard Avedon, Dimitry Baltermants, Lewis Baltz …
Negotiated Identities: Black Bodies

JAG Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg (ZA)
24 Oct 2004 – 2 Jan 2005

with Kay Hassan, Nontsikelelo "Lolo" Veleko
Photojournalism 1930-1970 . Recent gifts to the V&A

V&A Victoria & Albert Museum, London (GB)
11 Aug 2003 – 2 Nov 2003

with Robin Adshead, Lucien Aigner, Zinn Arthur, Brian Brake, Gisele Freund, Ernst Haas, Philippe Halsman, Frank Horvat, Mary Ellen Mark, Erich Salomon, David (Chim) Seymour, Nicolas Tikhomiroff

Events

Kyotographie 2026

Kyotographie , Kyoto (JP)
18 Apr 2026 – 16 May 2026

with Juliette Agnel, Anton Corbijn, Federico Estol, Atsushi Fukushima, Fatima Hassouna, Pieter Hugo, Lebohang Kganye, Linder, Daido Moriyama, Thandiwe Muriu, Sari Shibata, Yves Marchand & Romain Meffre
Chobi Mela Festival XI - RE

Chobi Mela Festival, Dhaka (BD)
16 Jan 2026 – 31 Jan 2026

with Indre Serpytyte, Mustafah Abdulaziz, Bani Abidi, Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin, Hoda Afshar, Sumi Anjuman, Lisa Barnard, Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme, Taysir Batniji, Myriam Boulos, Daniel Chatard, Rena Effendi …
36th Bienal de São Paulo

Not All Travellers Walk Roads—Of Humanity as Practice

Bienal de São Paulo, São Paulo (BR)
6 Sep 2025 – 11 Jan 2026

with Noor Abed, Akinbode Akinbiyi, Leila Alaoui, Korakrit Arunanondchai, Kader Attia, Myriam Omar Awadi, Meriem Bennani, Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Christopher Cozier, SONG Dong, Cevdet Erek, Theo Eshetu …
Amsterdam Art Week 2023

Amsterdam Art Weekend, Amsterdam (NL)
31 May 2023 – 4 Jun 2023

with Albarran Cabrera, Beni Bischof, Paul Cupido, Sara Cwynar, Ryan Gander, General Idea, Saodat Ismailova, Anouk Kruithof, Sem Langendijk, Willy Spiller
Paris Photo 2022

Paris Photo , Paris (FR)
10 Nov 2022 – 13 Nov 2022

with Edouard Elias, Laurence Aegerter, Slim Aarons, Berenice Abbott, Marina Abramovic, Robert Adams, Horst Ademeit, Ruven Afanador, Albarran Cabrera, David Alekhuogie, Lola Alvarez Bravo, Ljubodrag Andric …
Magnum Photographers : Square Print Sale: Then. Now. Next.

122 Square Prints priced at £100/€120/$100+tax

Photographers' Gallery, London (GB)
17 Oct 2022 – 23 Oct 2022

with Abbas, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Eve Arnold, Olivia Arthur, Matt Black, Rene Burri, Robert Capa, Sabiha Çimen, Julie Cockburn, Gohar Dashti, Carolyn Drake, Elliott Erwitt …
Frieze Art Fair | New York

Frieze art fair, New York (US)
18 May 2022 – 22 May 2022

with Doug Aitken, Carla Chan, Alex Da Corte, Thomas Demand, Stan Douglas, Paz Errazuriz, Roe Ethridge, Rodney Graham, Dan Graham, Leslie Hewitt, Alfredo Jaar, JR …
FotoFest Biennial 2020

AFRICAN COSMOLOGIES—Photography, Time, and the Other

FotoFest, Houston (US)
7 Mar 2020 – 19 Apr 2020

with Faisal Abdu'allah, Akinbode Akinbiyi, Helene A. Amouzou, Shobun Baile, Sammy Baloji, James Barnor, Bruno Boudjelal, Edson Chagas, Jamal Cyrus, Monica de Miranda, Jean Depara, Laura El-Tantawy …
Art Basel Miami Beach 2019

Art Basel Miami Beach, Miami (US)
5 Dec 2019 – 8 Dec 2019

with Marina Abramovic, Dove Allouche, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Diane Arbus, Vanessa Beecroft, Valerie Belin, Anna-Sophie Berger, Dawoud Bey, Margaret Bourke-White, Dirk Braeckman, Luiz Braga, Brassai …