Hamadou Bocoum (1930 - 1992)
Hamadou Bocoum was born in the Mopti region in northern Mali. After secondary school he settled in Bamako to become a teacher. He learned photography there at the beginning of the 1950s.

In 1956, when he was sent to Mopti to teach in primary school. He opened a studio in the old part of town and for the rest of his life he divided his time between teaching and photography. He worked as a photographer until 1982, when his sons took over the studio.

After Hamadou Bocoum's death, his negatives were moved from the studio, where they had been catalogued and kept in envelopes. They were put in the plastic bags that we found in the loft of his house in 1994.

• See some of Hamadou Bocoum's photos
• Buy the book about Hamadou Bocoum