Born in 1935 in Soloba, Mali.
Died in April 14th, 2016 in Bamako, Mali, where he lived and worked.
Malick Sidibé was born into a Peul family in a small village in Mali. He was noticed for his talent as a draftsman and was admitted to the School of Sudanese Craftsmen in Bamako, from which he graduated in 1955. He decorated the “Photo Service” shop of Gérard Guillat, also known as “Gégé la Pellicule,” who offered him a job as his apprentice. That is how he began working in photography in 1956. Two years later, he opened the “Studio Malick” in the center of Bamako in Bagadadji, on 30th Street, corner I9.
The vitality of the 1950s and the advent of independence gave birth to a new generation of photographers who were fully engaged in the cultural and social life they documented. Malick Sidibé, a pivotal figure in this scene, was highly appreciated by young people and was invited to all the parties organized by the youth in clubs, where they learned new dances from Europe and Cuba and dressed elegantly in Western clothing.
In 1957, he was the only photographer in Bamako covering all events, festivities, and surprise parties. On Saturdays, these parties lasted until dawn and continued on Sunday on the banks of the Niger River. This on-the-spot coverage produced simple images, full of truth and complicity. Spontaneity emerges from his photographs: he captured the joy of partying, full of laughter and life. He stopped this activity in 1978 but continued his studio photography.
His work has since gained international recognition through dozens of exhibitions worldwide, the most recent being the major retrospective Mali Twist in 2017 at the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, curated by André Magnin and Brigitte Ollier. He also received numerous awards, including the Golden Lion at the 52nd Venice Biennale, making him the first African artist to receive such an honor.
Collections
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Art Institute, Chicago, USA
The Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA
The Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, USA
Getty Museum, Los Angeles, USA
Musée d'Art Moderne de la ville de Paris (MAM), France
Musée Nicéphore Niépce, Chalon-sur-Saône, France
QAGOMA - Queensland Art Gallery, Australia
Art Collection of the United States Embassy
The Art Museum, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
Baltimore Museum of Art, Maryland USA
Birmingham Museum of Art, Alabama, USA
Brooklyn Museum, New York, USA
The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College, New York, USA
High Museum of Art, Atlanta, USA
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
International Center of Photography, New York, USA
Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford University, California, USA
LaSalle Bank, Chicago, USA
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA
National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA
The Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, USA
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania, USA
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, California, USA
The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, USA
C.A.A.C.-The Jean Pigozzi Collection, Genève, Suisse
Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Paris, France
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, France
Fondation Alliances, Casablanca, Morocco
Fonds de dotation agnès.b, Paris, France
Pas-Chaudoir Art Collection, Belgique
Contemporary Art and Photography, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA
KADIST, Paris, France
