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Sanlé Sory

b. 1943

Burkinabe photographer (born 1943)

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About Sanlé Sory

Born 1943. Sanlé Sory is a Burkinabé photographer.

Sanlé Sory (born 1943) is a Burkinabe photographer.

As a teenager, he photographed automobile accidents around Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkino-Faso, which he would race to document on his motorcycle. In 1960, he founded the Volta Photo Studio in Bobo-Dioulasso. Following this, he developed a reputation as a photographer of the Burkinabe club scene in the 1960s and '70s.

In 2018, the Art Institute of Chicago presented the exhibition Volta Photo: Starring Sanlé Sory and the People of Bobo-Dioulasso in the Small but Musically Mighty Country of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso). Steidl published an accompanying catalogue, titled Volta Photo. In 2021, the fashion designer Grace Wales Bonner released a line of clothing titled Volta Jazz and inspired by Sory's photographs. The line included a film by the same name, created by Joshua Woods.

Sory's work is included in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston the Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Tang Teaching Museum at Skidmore College.

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Important facts

Born
1943, French Upper Volta
Birth century
Occupation
Nationality
Also known as
Sory Sanlé

People in Sanlé Sory's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Sanlé Sory's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Sanlé Sory?

Burkinabe photographer (born 1943)

When was Sanlé Sory born?

Sanlé Sory was born in 1943 in French Upper Volta.

What is Sanlé Sory's occupation?

Sanlé Sory is a photographer.

What nationality is Sanlé Sory?

Sanlé Sory is Burkinabé.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Sanlé Sory

· Wikidata: Q77288354

· DBpedia: Sanlé Sory

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Sanlé Sory. https://biography.guide/sanle-sory/

MLA: "Sanlé Sory." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/sanle-sory/.

Chicago: "Sanlé Sory." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/sanle-sory/.

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