Sanlé Sory’s portraits are key documents of the exuberant youth culture in Burkina Faso following the West African nation’s independence from France. Sory opened his studio, Volta Photo, in 1960, the same year his country (then called Upper Volta) began its transition from remote colony to independent nation. He worked as a regional reporter, event photographer and record sleeve illustrator active in the city’s dynamic music scene. In his studio, customers and loyal friends pose with props, costumes, and loosely painted backdrops made available by the artist, depicting such scenes as a leisurely beachside boardwalk or an expansive airplane tarmac.
Sanlé Sory’s photographs have been exhibited in solo exhibitions in Morocco, Burkina Faso, the United Kingdom, and France. The artist’s premiere U.S. solo exhibitions opened at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Gallery in 2018. Photographs by Sanlé are represented in the permanent collections of Art Institute of Chicago; Tang Museum, Saratoga Springs; Minneapolis Institute of Art; North Carolina Museum of Art; RISD Museum, Providence and the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie.