Je vais décoller 2

White sunglasses, a fringed bag on the shoulder, one leg raised as if climbing aboard: this young man in a tee and flared trousers acts out his big departure in front of the studio's painted aeroplane, a BOAC VC10 spread above the checkerboard floor. At Volta Photo in Bobo-Dioulasso, Sanlé Sory lent his sitters the props of their dreams, and many came to picture themselves as travellers for the length of a pose. The 6×6 square of the Rolleiflex, never cropped, catches the stride at full tilt and turns the scene into pure movement.

Numbered 4/8, this limited edition print is a black and white print in digigraphie on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta 315 g paper, museum framed under museum glass. Rediscovered in 2011, Sanlé Sory stands among the great names of african photography, with works held by MoMA, the Art Institute of Chicago, the V&A and LACMA. On view in Generation Volta at 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

A painted aeroplane, a pair of sunglasses, one raised leg: in the history of African photography, Sanlé Sory's studio was first of all a social stage where each sitter pictured their dreams. Volta Photo lent out backdrops and props, and people came to invent themselves as travellers for the length of a pose, before the BOAC VC10 spread across the wall. Far from documentary, this studio photography records a longing for elsewhere, played with a whole generation's joyful seriousness.

All works by Sanlé Sory · Exhibition catalogue (PDF)