Seydou Keïta's Studio Photography Exhibition at Brooklyn Museum Explores Tactility and Identity

The Brooklyn Museum presents 'Seydou Keïta: A Tactile Lens,' an exhibition featuring over 280 works by the Malian photographer. Curated by Catherine E McKinley with assistance from Imani Williford, the show reconstructs the atmosphere of Keïta's Bamako studio, which operated from 1948 in Bamako-Coura. His portraits capture a period when Mali was moving toward independence and urban life was rapidly evolving. The exhibition pairs photographs with textiles, garments, and jewelry from the era, highlighting how material choices shaped identity. Never-before-published negatives from the Keïta family appear as lightboxes and projections, alongside vintage prints and later enlargements. A soundtrack by Nile Rodgers and Chmba Chilemba evokes the city's transitional pulse. Keïta's work is placed in dialogue with Ghanaian photographer James Barnor, American photographer Irving Penn, and contemporary artist Zanele Muholi, exploring shared themes of self-fashioning and agency. Pauline Vermare, the museum's Phillip and Edith Leonian Curator of Photography, hopes visitors feel the wonder Keïta's studio represented. The exhibition runs until 17 May 2025.