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. Since then, his work has been presented at many international events (biennials, international fairs, exhibitions).

His works received several prizes: Prix Blachère in 2006 in Dakar Biennale, Prix de la francophonie at African photography encounter of Bamako in 2007, Fondation Thamgidi prize in 2008 in Dakar and the Off prize of European Union. In 2012, he co-founded the collective «Rendez-Vous of Artists» which is a nomad platform where artists of all kinds: curators, gallerists, art lovers, cultural journalists, exchange. These exchanges sometimes lead to exhibition projects. Since 2013, he also works as a curator (3rd International Biennial of Casablanca) and scenographer mostly in Morocco with Arkane Africa.