The African Biennal of Photography

The 14th Bamako Encounters – The African Biennal of Photography will be held from November 16, 2024 to January 15, 2025 in Bamako, Mali. This call is open to artists from the African world and its diaspora, photographers and videographers, amateurs or professionals, alone or in groups, with no limit of age or nationality. This 14th edition celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Biennal, giving a special echo to contemporary photographic expression.

Entries will only be admitted via the online application form.
Submission deadline: March 31, 2024 

The chosen thematic will focus on KUMA, the Speech, the Silence and the Noise. Photography has the power to make an image speak, to convey emotions, ideas and messages. A picture can tell a thousand stories. Transmit emotions, ideas and messages through the sheer force of the moment captured, by the framing, the light or the staging. Photographers have the power to make an image speak thanks to this genius. Photography speaks when bringing the past to life. For all eternity, it remains the memory of a moment, an era, a gesture, and the witness of a present that is conjugated with the future. Today, new voices are emerging from the Whole-World. Change of speech or change of climate. Nature urges us to make its voice heard. The 14th Bamako Encounters invites artists to explore new forms, experiment with dialogues in between word and image, and give visual existence to moments of speech, eloquence, anger, hope, recollection, silence, cacophony and noise.

Submissions must include

• the completed application form
• a short biography and a detailed curriculum vitae
• a portrait of the artist and a high-resolution passport photo
• a scanned copy of the passport
• 5 high-resolution images (300 dpi for 30×50 cm) of recent works with their technical specifications
  Optionally, a zip file containing the video files (5 max.) with a maximum volume of 2 GB, in h.264 and between 30 and 50 FPS with a minimum resolution of HD (1920 x 1080) and/or web links to the online videos.
  Please include a document describing installation options for online photography/video projects (including technical requirements, e.g. short-throw projector, mac mini, iPad touch, speakers, etc.).
• Artists may submit multiple series and apply in both fields (photography/video).
  File naming: surname_first name_title_series.
  Send your files (photos or videos) in a single zip folder. File name: surname_first name.zip.
• A note of intent presenting the series and/or video works, in French or English, in PDF or word format, 5 pages maximum, containing a clear and concise description of the proposal. In the case of a specific installation, please include images to allow visualizing the project.
• The applicant’s portfolio (optional)