Description
Book SynopsisImaging Culture is a sociohistorical study of the meaning, function, and aesthetic significance of photography in Mali, West Africa, from the 1930s to the present.
Trade ReviewKeller divides her splendidly illustrated book into, first, a history of photography in Mali in the twentieth century and, second, a deep inquiry into the social values, old and new, that Malians have expressed in their visual imagery.
-- Diana Wylie * H-Africa *
Keller's devotion to her subject led her to spend eighteen years exploring Malian cultures. As her rich footnotes reveal, she consulted archives in France and Mali, commanded the rich scholarly literature on Mali as well as local proverbs, and studied the Bamanankan language.
-- Diana Wylie - Boston University * H-Net (Africa) *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements
Introduction
Development of Photography in Mali
1. Photography and Urbanization (1890–1940s)
2. Heyday of Black and White (1950s–1980s)
Imaging Culture
3. Photography as Social Agency
4. Visual Griots—Photographic Artistry and Invention
5. Portraiture and Mande Aesthetics
6. Ja and Metaphysical Dimensions of Photography
7. Contemporary Practice and International Market (1990s–Present)
Plates
Bibliography
Index
