C'est ce que je voix

Amadou Sanogo’s oeuvre features an all-star cast of distorted tragicomic figures. These figures and the worlds they inhabit suggest subversive narratives of power, informed both by local and international politics. Born in Segou, Mali, and proud of his noble heritage, his ancestors founded the Zangorolo commune in Southern Mali, who were famous for their resistance to French Colonialism. Sanogo sees his art as a corollary of this tradition of resistance to oppression as well as being borne out of a rich artistic patrimony. After attending the Institut National des Arts in Bamako, he disregarded his formal training and chose to develop his own visual language. This is characterised by his use of repurposed cloth acquired from local markets rather than traditional canvas. In 2014 he opened the Atelier Badialan in Bamako, where he welcomes young artists, offering them studio spaces as well as encouraging artistic discourse and the development of an artistic community.
In C’est ce que je voix we see one of Sanogo’s distinctive figures, with eyes wide open as if they have recognised something ominous from over the horizon.
Amadou Sanogo’s work is held in the permanent collections of the Musée des beaux-arts, Rennes and the Astrup Fearnley Museet, Oslo.