Les amoureux noir et blanc

They came dressed to match. The checked scarf knotted around the young man's neck repeats, thread for thread, the fabric of his companion's dress and headwrap. Seated side by side in front of the Volta Photo studio's painted aeroplane, the BOAC VC10 as their backdrop, they face the lens unsmiling, with the gentle gravity of a special occasion. In Bobo-Dioulasso, people came to Sanlé Sory to seal a story: the couple's portrait was prepared, dressed and composed. The Rolleiflex frames in a 6×6 square, never cropped, and sets both faces at the very centre of the image.

First of a limited edition print run of eight, numbered 1/8: a black and white print in digigraphie on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta 315 g paper, with museum framing and museum glass. Few bodies of african photography are as celebrated as Sanlé Sory's, held by MoMA, the Art Institute of Chicago, the V&A and LACMA. Exhibited in Generation Volta at Sakana Gallery, Donostia, until 1 October 2026.

Print details

• Edition : 1/8
• Image : 36 × 36 cm
• Paper : 40 × 50 cm
• Technique : Digigraphie print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta 315 g paper
• Framing : Museum framing, museum glass

The couple portrait is a canonical form of African studio photography, and this one, two lovers in matching fabrics before the painted aeroplane, offers a version of real poise. It is that tradition the MoMA has just celebrated in Ideas of Africa, where Sanlé Sory's portraits were shown beside those of Seydou Keïta and Malick Sidibé. One conviction links them within the history of African photography: the sitter decides the image they leave of themselves.

All works by Sanlé Sory · Exhibition catalogue (PDF)