Les danseurs de Shakara

Two dancers burst out of the night, caught by the flash in front of a low wall half swallowed by darkness. In the foreground, a leather jacket, pale flared trousers and a gaze planted straight into the lens; behind him, his partner stretches an arm mid-move, legs flaring white. Photographer of the Volta Jazz orchestra, Sanlé Sory ran the Volta Photo studio by day and staged his own bals poussière by night in the villages around Bobo-Dioulasso, bringing back, with his square 6 × 6 Rolleiflex, never cropped, images where the dancing never stops.

This black and white print belongs to a now celebrated body of work, that of a major figure of African photography, held at MoMA, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Victoria and Albert Museum and LACMA. The limited edition print, numbered 4/8, is a digigraphie on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta 315 g paper, in museum framing with museum glass. On view in Generation Volta, Sakana Gallery, Donostia, until 1 October 2026.

Print details

• Edition : 4/8
• Image : 36 × 36 cm
• Paper : 40 × 50 cm
• Technique : Digigraphie print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta 315 g paper
• Framing : Museum framing, museum glass

Two dancers frozen by flash, leather jacket and flared trousers before a low wall: the Bobo-Dioulasso night answers the daytime studio. Sanlé Sory is one of the few photographers of his generation to have documented in this way the nightlife of a provincial city. Rediscovered in 2011 by Florent Mazzoleni, this side of his work has reached MoMA, the Art Institute of Chicago and LACMA, alongside his studio photography.

All works by Sanlé Sory · Exhibition catalogue (PDF)