Malick Sidibe, 80, a pioneering photographer from Mali who was known for his portraits and scenes of life in the West African country during the 1960s, died on Friday. Sidibe's powerful black and white photographs won him international accolades, capturing the lives of Malians at a time the country was going through dramatic change in the years leading up to and right after the end of French colonial rule.
Often referred to as the ‘Father of African Photography,’ Sidibe was the first artist from the continent whose photographs were put on solo exhibition at the Grand Palais museum in Paris. Today, his images have been put on display in museums around the world, including a current exhibition in New York.
