The art of Mali takes many diverse forms, but it all celebrates the bonds of the communities that create it.
13th century–present
videos + essays
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Photographic postcards of West African masquerade
The invention of photography instigated a complex process of image production and consumption in colonial Africa.
Malick Sidibé, Vues de dos
In Vues de dos, Malick Sidibé took his background in portrait photography to new compositions inspired by Mali and Western traditions in portraiture.
Abdoulaye Ndoye, Ahmed Baba
Ahmed Baba relates to Ndoye’s experiences in Timbuktu and his participation in the 2013 workshop organized in the aftermath of—and in response to—the destruction of cultural heritage.
Guancho Diarra, woman’s wrapper (bògòlanfini)
This wrapper by Guancho Diarra is a classic example of a long-standing Malian textile tradition.
Malick Sidibé, Nuit de Noël (Happy Couple)
Fun and festive, Nuit de Noël (Happy Couple) is exemplary of Malick Sidibé’s best known body of work: photographs of young people at social gatherings and events during the 1960s and 1970s.
Timbuktu
Timbuktu was an intellectual and spiritual capital and a center for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries
Tomb of Askia
This tomb bears testimony to the power and riches of the empire that flourished in the 15th and 16th centuries through its control of the trans-Saharan trade, notably in salt and gold.
Saving Timbuktu’s manuscripts
A heroic effort to save and preserve Mali's long manuscript tradition.
Lost History: the terracotta sculpture of Djenne Djenno
Are these little-understood figures representations of diseased people, or an attempt to ward off illness?
Seydou Keïta, Untitled (Seated Woman with Chevron Print Dress)
Studio photography produced mementos for the growing middle class: Keïta’s Bamako studio was abuzz with clients.
Kòmò Helmet Mask (Kòmòkunw) (Bamana peoples)
Intended to intimidate, this headdress was used by a member of the powerful Kumo society of blacksmiths.
Male and Female Antelope Headdresses (Ci wara) (Bamana peoples)
These headdresses celebrate the divine Ci Wara, half man and half antelope, who introduced humans to agriculture.
