In South Africa portrait images displayed  in  homes emphasized the dignity of their subjects and  the  stability of family life during a period of indignity  and  social upheaval under apartheid. But when  interviewing  families about these images one often  encounters sensitivity  issues too often overlooked by  scholars and curators who  examine studio practices without  consulting the subjects of  the images. These include  anxiety about repackaging for  display in new contexts and  for broader audiences, as well  as basic copyright  concerns. In this paper, based on recent  research on  family collections of photographs in South  Africa's  black urban neighborhoods, begins in a  "performative" mode, describing the types and  uses  of photographs kept as family mementos in South  Africa's  black homes. It then suggest methods to  address the critical  issues related to privacy, secrecy,  patrimony, and  iconoclasm that everywhere arise in  vernacular image studies  but are not always foregrounded  in writing and display for a  wider audience.