Portraiture and Archives in African Photography explores how artists of African descent have approached portraiture in historical and contemporary photography. The exhibition draws upon strengths in the Eskenazi Museum’s collection of Malick Sidibé’s and Tijani Sitou’s photography during the mid- to late-twentieth century to consider the significance of their work today as well as new directions in portrait photography among contemporary lens-based artists working in West Africa. Sidibé and Sitou, who both ran photo studios in Mali, became well-known within their respective communities in Bamako and Mopti. Sidibé also garnered global recognition for his portraits of Malians following political independence from France in 1960. This led to his fame as one of the most celebrated photographers from the African continent. This exhibition offers a new take on Sidibé’s and Sitou’s legacy as contemporary photographer Ibrahima Thiam re-invents their images in ways that re-inscribes them with new meaning today.
With focus on West Africa, Portraiture and Archives in African Photography explores how contemporary artists, including Thiam as well as Zohra Opoku and Lina Iris Viktor, use and engage with photographic archives. The exhibition will display new acquisitions of Thiam’s and Opoku’s work to the Eskenazi Museum’s collection, in addition to a newly commissioned artwork by Thiam, made specifically for this exhibition, which responds to the Eskenazi Museum’s photography collection.
This exhibition is co-curated by contemporary artist Ibrahima Thiam who was in residence summer 2024, Eskenazi Museum curator Allison Martino, and Indiana University faculty Beth Buggenhagen. This collaborative approach to curating an exhibition with a contemporary artist, art historian, and anthropologist seeks to offer multiple, alternative perspectives on photography.
The Eskenazi Museum of Art will be holding a two-day symposium March 28–29, 2025 organized in conjunction with this exhibition that will feature presentations by artists, scholars, and curators, gallery tours, and behind-the-scenes artwork viewing.
This exhibition received support from the Indiana University Institute for Advanced Study, College Arts and Humanities Institute, Office of the Vice President for International Affairs, and The Walter Center for Career Achievement, as well as the Raymond and Laura Wielgus Endowed Curatorship for the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and Indigenous Art of the Americas.
