Malick Sidibé’s Vues de dos
Getty Conversations


A conversation with Claire L’Heureux, Department of Photographs, J. Paul Getty Museum and Steven Zucker, Executive Director, Smarthistory in front of Vues de dos, print 2003; frame 2004, Malick Sidibé. Gelatin silver print, glass, paint, cardboard, tape, and string, 36.5 x 27 cm (The J. Paul Getty Museum) © Malick Sidibé. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York

What do you expect to see in a traditional portrait? See what artist Malick Sidibé has done to take his background in portrait photography to new compositions inspired by Mali and Western traditions in portraiture.

Getty has joined forces with Smarthistory to bring you an in-depth look at select works within our collection, whether you’re looking to learn more at home or want to make art more accessible in your classroom. This video series illuminates art history concepts through fun, unscripted conversations between art historians, curators, archaeologists, and artists, committed to a fresh take on the history of visual arts.

Learn more about “Vues de dos” in Getty’s collection online

View the Getty Conversations series

The Archive of Malian Photography

Malick Sidibé’s retrospective exhibition Mali Twist from Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain

Candace M. Keller, Imaging Culture: Photography in Mali, West Africa (Indiana University Press, 2021).

Michelle Lamunière, You Look Beautiful like That: The Portrait Photographs of Seydou Keïta and Malick Sidibé (Harvard Art Museums, 2001).

Cite this page as: Claire L'Heureux and Dr. Steven Zucker, "Malick Sidibé’s Vues de dos
Getty Conversations," in Smarthistory, May 17, 2023, accessed March 19, 2024, https://smarthistory.org/malick-sidibes-vues-de-dosgetty-conversations/.