Seydou Keïta (photographer)
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Seydou Keïta (1921/23 – 21 November 2001) was a
Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
an photographer known for his portraits of people and families he took at his portrait photography studio in Mali's capital,
Bamako Bamako is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2022 population of 4,227,569. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country. Bamak ...
, in the 1950s. His photographs are widely acknowledged not only as a record of Malian society but also as pieces of art.


Biography

Keïta was born in 1921 in
Bamako Bamako is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2022 population of 4,227,569. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country. Bamak ...
,
Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
, although the exact date is unknown. He was the oldest in a family of five children. His father Bâ Tièkòró and his uncle Tièmòkò were furniture makers. Keïta developed an interest in photography when his uncle gave him a Kodak Brownie with a film with eight shots in 1935, after returning from a trip to
Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...
. In the beginning, Keïta worked as both a carpenter and photographer, taking first portraits of his family and friends, later of people in the neighborhood. He learned photography and how to develop from Pierre Garnier, a French photographic supply store owner, and from Mountaga Traoré, his mentor. In 1948 he set up his first studio in the family house in Bamako-Koura behind the main prison. After acquiring studio space and a dark room, Keïta began shooting portraits of clients, and he eventually garnered a reputation for his style in both his photos and the way in which he shot his subjects. In an interview with art curator André Magnin, Keïta describes his process and says that he showed his clients examples of previous portraits he had done, allowed them to pick a pose that they would like, and then he says "I suggested a position that was better suited for them, and in effect, I determined the good position. I was never wrong". Another aspect of Keïta's style that led to his popularity as a portrait photographer was the "innovative use of props and backdrops" in all his photos. He would often use backdrops that had stark patterns. Many people cite how well these backgrounds specifically went with his female subject’s clothes but Keïta has often described this as being a coincidence. Keïta was highly sought after by his clients not only for his signature style, but the culture and elegance that a photo of themselves stamped with the words "Photo SEYDOU KEÏTA" represented. Keïta did not record the identity of thousands of Malians that passed through his studio. Since 1948, he had meticulously preserved all his negatives which he estimated ranged from 7,000 to 30,000. His archives were categorized by broad types (e.g. couples, groups, and single full-figures) then subcategorized by date. Every few years, Keïta would renew his studio props, which would later help establish the chronology of his work. He wanted to portray Mali's memories and traditions stating that, he wanted "to take pictures of our rural people during harvest time, and the ritual ceremonies that go about then. That is where the essence of Mali comes out." Elizabeth Bigham, a scholar at Columbia University, describes how the period shaped his art, saying that, "his studio was born during the immense economic and demographic boom that swept Bamako in the years after World War II." In 1962, shortly after Mali gained independence, Keïta was offered a job by the Mali head of police and the director of Malian National Security. He was asked to be the official government photographer, and he swiftly took the job. Though he continued working for the government for many years, Keïta’s new job eventually lead to the shutdown of his studio in 1963. He remained famous in Mali despite his retirement in 1977. In an article for ''African Arts'', Keïta explained that he quit photography once color became successful. In 1991, Keïta's work became known outside of West Africa when his works were shown anonymously at the Center for African Art in New York City. Though his work was first introduced to international audiences through his anonymous presence at this “African Express” exhibition, he has since been identified and given recognition in later exhibitions. This is due in part to art curator André Magnin, who sought to find him after seeing his anonymous work. Magnin was later entrusted with thousands of Keïta’s negatives, these making up the majority of his publicly displayed work. Keïta died on 21 November 2001 in Paris.


Publications

*Keïta, Seydou, André Magnin, and Youssouf Cissé. ''Seydou Keïta''. Zurich: Scalo, 1997. *Lamunière, Michelle, Seydou Keita, and Malick Sidibé. ''You Look Beautiful Like That: The Portrait Photographs of Seydou Keïta and Malick Sidibé''. Cambridge: Harvard University Art Museums, 2001. *''Seydou Keita: Photographs, Bamako, Mali 1948-1963.'' Göttingen:
Steidl Steidl is a German-language publisher based in Göttingen, Germany. Founded in 1968 by Gerhard Steidl, it publishes photobooks. Overview The company was started by Gerhard Steidl.Bill Kouwenhoven, "Off to see the wizard", ''British Journa ...
, 2011. .


Exhibitions


Solo exhibitions

*2001: ''Flash Afrique'', Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna, Austria & Düsseldorf Cultural Forum, Germany *2011: ''Seydou Keïta'', Gallery Fifty One, Antwerp, Belgium *2018: Bamako Portraits, Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands


Group exhibitions

*1996: ''African Photographers'', Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA *2005: *2006: ''About Africa, part one'', Gallery Fifty One, Antwerp, Belgium *2006: ''Some Tribes'', Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland *2006: ''Vive l'Afrique'', Galerie du Jour – Agnès b., Tokyo, Japan *2006: ''100% Africa'', Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Spain *2007: ''Why Africa?'', Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli,
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
, Italy *2008: ''Accrochage'', Gallery Fifty One, Antwerp, Belgium *2009: ''Masters of Photography'', Gallery Fifty One, Antwerp, Belgium *2015: ''The Pistil's Waltz'', Gallery Fifty One, Antwerp, Belgium


Collections

Keita's work is held in the following permanent collections: * The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois: 8 items * Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, Missouri: 2 items *
Minneapolis Institute of Art The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the List of largest art museums, largest ar ...
, Minneapolis, Minnesota: 6 items *
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
, New York, New York: 10 items *
University of Chicago Booth School of Business The University of Chicago Booth School of Business (branded as Chicago Booth) is the graduate business school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1898, Chicago Booth is the second-oldest ...
, Chicago, Illinois: 5 items


Further reading

*Bell, Clare.
In/sight: African Photographers, 1940 to the Present
': Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, May 24-September 29, 1996. New York, N.Y: Guggenheim Museum, 1996. *Enwezor, Okwui, and Gabriele Conrath-Scholl. ''Contemporary African Photography from the Walther Collection: Events of the Self: Portraiture and Social Identity''. Burlafingen: The Walther Collection, 2010.


References


External links

* * * * * Audio Slideshow from the ''New York Times''. * * Video duration 1m 33s. Uploader
London Review of Books The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published bimonthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews. History The ''London Review of Book ...
2016. {{DEFAULTSORT:Keita, Seydou Malian photographers Portrait photographers 1920s births 2001 deaths People from Bamako Date of birth unknown 20th-century photographers