Malick Sidibé: Iconic portraits of African youth culture
- Text by HUCK HQ
- Photography by Malick Sidibe
Malick Sidibé – nicknamed “the eye of Bamako” – is one of Africa’s most beloved portrait photographers. Working across the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, he shot black and white studies of youth culture; unveiling an exciting, exuberant side to his hometown of Bamako in Mali.
Now, coming just over a year after his death in April 2016, the legendary photographer is being celebrated with a new show at Paris’ Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain. Titled Mali Twist, it promises to be the largest ever exhibition of Sidibé’s work, with over 300 images and 30 never-before-seen studio portraits set to go on display.
“The photographs reveal Malick Sidibé’s capacity, starting at the beginning of the 1960s, to grasp the vitality of the youth of Bamako and impose his unique style, recognised today throughout the world,” explains a spokesperson for the show. It’s set to run at the Paris institution until February 25 next year.
An accompanying book of the same name is also available; packed with lavish examples of his studio portraits and party shots. His lesser known work – such as his outdoor photography set around local villages and the Niger River – is also featured.
Un yéyé en position, 1963. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Mon chapeau et pattes d’éléphant, 1974. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Les amis dans la même tenue, 1972. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Un gentleman en position, 1980. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Circa 1972. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Nuit de Noël, 1963. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
1973. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Fans de James Brown, 1965.
Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
1968. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Danser le twist, 1965. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
À la plage, 1974. Collection Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris
© Malick Sidibé
Extract from Mali Twist (Éditions Xavier Barral, Fondation
Cartier pour l’art contemporain, 2017)
Malick Sidibe: Mali Twist is available now, and the accompanying exhibition is on show at Fondation Cartier from 20 October-25 February, 2018.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
An unnerving portrait of the USA’s fractured society
A new photobook explores America’s increasing inequality, division and toxic culture wars in a historic election year.
Written by: Isaac Muk
“Music can save you for a day”: Touché Amoré on social media and subcultures
To celebrate a new album and reflect on a decade and a half of being themselves, frontman Jeremy Bolm chats about opening up via lyrics, subcultures in the internet age, and the hardcore re-revival.
Written by: Isaac Muk
Meet the Paratriathlete who cheated death twice
A near fatal training crash ruined British Paralympian George Peasgood’s Paris 2024 plans. As he recovers, his life and outlook are changing – will LA 2028 be part of his future?
Written by: Sheridan Wilbur
A glimpse of life for women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule
‘NO WOMAN’S LAND’ has been awarded the prestigious 14th Carmignac Photojournalism Award and will be exhibited at the Réfectoire des Cordelieres in Paris this autumn.
Written by: Isaac Muk
In Photos: A decade growing up in pre-gentrification Lower East Side
A new photobook provides an up-close-and-personal look at the life of a Puerto Rican family, documenting them growing up as the world changed around them.
Written by: Isaac Muk
This summer taught us everything is... marketing
Months of historic political violence, memes, auras, and, of course, ‘brat’ has newsletter columnist Emma Garland asking if anything is real anymore?
Written by: Emma Garland