ONE SMALL SEED MAGAZINE Issue #27 Digital 02 | Page 15

With each stroke of purple paint came a
new dimension, and the gravitas started to
grow with an aesthetic dialogue that was
both infectious and humbling. His Madiba
mural represented rising above those that
oppress; those that discriminate; those
that walk with closed eyes…The mural’s
purple conviction painted an aesthetic of
empowerment whilst it shone with saffron
nostalgia…
On the mural are four words that stand
as legion: The Purple Shall Govern. The
symbolism in this was and is revolutionary.
During our interview Fairey shares a
bit about the meaning of Purple in the
Mandela mural:
“My friend Jesse Stagg lived in Cape Town,
South Africa for many years, and when
Apartheid was ending he was a witness,
and part of, what was called The Purple
Revolution. He explained about the history,
saying: ‘the 20th anniversary is coming
up and I have outtakes from Mandela’s
Nobel Peace Prize photo session, and if
you could illustrate [Mandela] in purple

with a nod to The Purple Revolution I
think it’d mean a lot to a lot of people in
South Africa.’ And of course that was an
incredible opportunity for me and I was
excited to make an illustration of one of
my heroes.”
The Purple Revolution was an antiapartheid protest, which took place four
days before the Nationalist Party held
their elections in Cape Town. Police used
water cannons armed with purple dye to
quell the unrest and to stain the protesters
so they could later be identified and
detained. However, an activist redirected
the water cannons onto the Nationalist
Party’s
headquarters,
leaving
the
oppressors’ home base tainted.
'I’m an advocate of human rights, justice,
and equality, so it should be obvious
why Nelson Mandela is a hero of mine.
Some people seem confused by the
use of purple and the slogan on my
Mandela mural but they reference the
anti Apartheid Purple Protest.' (Fairey)