Saidou Dicko

SAÏDOU DICKO WAS BORN IN BURKINA FASO IN 1979. A SELF-TAUGHT VISUAL ARTIST (PHOTOGRAPHER, VIDEOGRAPHER, INSTALLER AND PAINTER), HE LIVES AND WORKS IN PARIS.

 

Shadows have always inspired Saïdou Dicko’s work. When he was a child, the shadows pushed him to draw. Whilst he was a shepherd, he used to trace the outlines of the bushes, animals and rivers he met. The cross on top of the head of his characters also echo his childhood. That is a wink to the pattern of one fabric from the Peulh tradition. For him, it is a way to pay a tribute to beauty and to represent the humanity of his characters. To this extent, he turns them into shadows. In his series of painted photographs, The Shadowed People - unique pieces - a combination of different clichés, he covers the subject with black paint. In that way, the beings give their place to their shadow, providing a universal scope to the work.

 

The life experiences of Saïdou Dicko, between Paris and Burkina Faso, his native culture and his travels, leave their mark on his work with poetry as well as mystery. 

His life experiences between Paris and Burkina Faso, his native culture and his travels, leave their mark on his work with poetry as well as mystery. In 2012, he co-founded the collective Rendez-Vous d’Artistes, a nomadic platform where artists, curators, gallerists, art enthusiasts, and journalists come together to develop projects.

 

In 2006, Saïdou Dicko received the Blachère Prize at the Dakar Biennale, marking his debut on the international art scene. Since then, his work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions around the world, including in France, the United States, Germany, Belgium, Italy, and Burkina Faso. His works have also been shown at international art fairs, including Paris Photo (France), Art Genève (Switzerland), Art Brussels (Belgium), Intersect Aspen Art Fair (United States), and Investec Cape Town (South Africa).

 

Galerie AFIKARIS is presenting his third solo exhibition in Paris, Où la terre et le ciel se croisent, until February 28, following The Stories Children Used to Tell under the Mango Tree in 2024 and The Prince of Shadows in 2022, for which a monograph was published.