Sangoma portraits on exhibition

Sangomas - traditional healers and shamans, for those who don't know - are often seen as mysterious and fascinating by the outside world.

Identifiable by their unique garb and instruments such as ishoba (fly whisk made from wildebeest or cow tail), sangomas are an important part in several South African cultures.

Now British photographer Peter Frank has made them the subjects of his latest portraits.

Frank took the images of the sangomas in Cape Town, capturing them in their traditional clothes, in the rooms where they practice their gift and craft (communicating with the ancestors, "reading" bones and concocting herbal remedies for different maladies).

The sangoma exhibition will take place at the beautifuLL life building in Bree Street, Cape Town, from 1 December to 16 December 2011.

30% of all proceeds from the exhibition will go towards Youngblood Arts and Culture Development, which supports arts and culture initiatives.