Mungo Murray Chisuse

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Mungo Murray Chisuse
Bornc. late 19th century
Nyasaland (now Malawi)
Diedunknown
NationalityMalawian
Occupation(s)Photographer (studio portraiture), organist
Years activec. 1900s–1920s
Known forEarly African studio photography in Nyasaland; portrait of John Chilembwe

Mungo Murray Chisuse was a Nyasaland (now Malawi) photographer and one of the earliest documented African studio photographers in the country. He is widely credited as the author of the well-known portrait of John Chilembwe, the Baptist pastor and anticolonial leader, an image that later informed Chilembwe’s depiction on Malawian banknotes. [1] [2]

Contents

Biography

In this photo taken by Mungo Murray Chisuse, husband and wife John and Ida Chilembwe pose with their child, Emma. John, Ida, and Emma Chilembwe, circa 1910.jpg
In this photo taken by Mungo Murray Chisuse, husband and wife John and Ida Chilembwe pose with their child, Emma.

Little is known about Chisuse’s early life. By the late 1890s he appears in records connected to mission circles and modern technologies; research notes that as early as 1897 he and fellow Malawian missionary James Gray Kamlinje visited Scotland and learned to ride bicycles, reflecting the transnational networks in which he moved during the colonial period. [3]

Chisuse established himself in Blantyre, advertising his work as an “African photographer, Blantyre, Nyasaland.” Scholars describe him as not only the first known African photographer in Malawi but also “arguably, the finest portrait photographer ever to have worked in the country.” [1]

Alongside photography, later sources recall Chisuse’s musical contributions, noting his standing as Blantyre’s first African organist—an indicator of his wider cultural role in the town’s public life. [4]

Work and subjects

In this photo taken by Chisuse for a wedding at Domasi Church, Malawi, circa 1920-1929 Wedding at Domasi Church, Malawi, circa 1920-1929 (cropped).jpg
In this photo taken by Chisuse for a wedding at Domasi Church, Malawi, circa 1920-1929

Among his best-known works are images of John Chilembwe and his family. A widely reproduced photograph shows Chilembwe with his wife Ida and their daughter Emma, taken circa 1910 and attributed to Chisuse. [5] Scholarship also links Chisuse’s portrait of Chilembwe to the image later used on Malawian currency. [2]

Legacy

Chisuse occupies a formative place in the history of photography in Malawi, representing an early African-owned practice during a period when the medium was largely controlled by European studios. [1] His surviving photographs are held and circulated in archives and public repositories, and works attributed to him appear in curated collections and online media libraries. [6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 McCracken, John (2008). "Mungo Murray Chisuse and the Early History of Photography in Malawi". The Society of Malawi Journal. 61 (2): 1–18. JSTOR   29779264 . Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Mungo Murray Chisuse and the early history of photography in Malawi". AfricaBib. African Studies Centre Leiden. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  3. ↑ Cardon, Nick. "The 'Nyasaland Bicycle' (c. 1900): A History of Technology and Empire". University of Birmingham. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  4. ↑ Walton, Caleb, ed. (2022). "The Rest Is History". Visions for Racial Equality. Cambridge University Press. pp. 265–282. doi:10.1017/9781009076487.012. ISBN   978-1-009-07648-7 . Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  5. ↑ McCracken, John (2016). "Hearing voices from the Chilembwe Rising" (PDF). British Academy Review (27). Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  6. ↑ McCracken, John (2012). "5: The Chilembwe Rising". A History of Malawi: 1859–1966. Boydell & Brewer. pp. 127–146. doi:10.1515/9781782040286-011. ISBN   978-1-78204-028-6 . Retrieved 2 September 2025.
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