Created By
Saleh Lô
Graphite drawing on paper
Curator
Luke Chapman
In Amadou, Saleh Lô distills his practice of "witnessing as praxis" to its most essential elements, demonstrating how the supposedly humble medium of graphite can carry profound ethical weight. This drawing, born from post-interview dialogue, embodies the artist's commitment to what we might call "collaborative testimony"—a process that repositions the Talibé child from object of concern to active participant in the construction of his own visual archive. The work's restraint functions as a form of respect, avoiding the spectacular excess that too often accompanies representations of suffering in favor of a quiet insistence on individual dignity. Within the broader constellation of Lô's Talibé series, Amadou operates as both intimate encounter and political statement—a reminder that behind every systematic injustice lies the irreducible specificity of human experience. The drawing compels us to move beyond passive consumption of images toward what Paulo Freire would recognize as "critical consciousness," where seeing becomes a form of ethical engagement with the world's persistent inequalities.
Amadou, executed in graphite on paper, emerges from Saleh Lô's sustained engagement with collaborative portraiture as both methodological and ethical imperative. The drawing's deliberate economy of line and gestural mark-making articulates a visual lexicon that privileges presence over spectacle, specificity over generalization. Through subtle gradations of tone and the strategic deployment of negative space, Lô constructs a portrait that operates as what might be termed a "testimonial drawing"—one that bears witness to individual subjectivity while refusing the voyeuristic tendencies that often characterize representations of marginalized subjects. The delicate rendering of facial features, particularly the eyes and mouth, suggests an intimacy born of direct encounter rather than distant observation. The work's material simplicity—graphite's inherent modesty—amplifies rather than diminishes the sitter's dignified presence, creating a visual field where Amadou's agency as co-author of his own representation becomes palpable.
Created By
Saleh Lô
67 x 43 cm | 26 x 17 in
Framed (Black)
2025
