Louis Hostalier (Senegal) (French, active ca. 1890-1912)
1900-1910 (ca)
In Nioro (Sudan)-Wives and son of Wolof trader [A Nioro (Soudan)-Femmes et Fils de Marchand Ouolofes]

Postcard
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Visual Resource Archive, Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas., Accession Number: VRA.PC.AF.04
 
Publisher: Déposé
 
Curatorial description (Accessed: 13 August 2018)
Following established conventions for formal photographic portraits, the sitters face the viewer, rest their fingers on their knees, and turn outward their Moroccan shoes, known as babouches. This pose allows them to display the typically Senegalese stich-resist patterns on the indigo wrappers they wear around their waists. Closely framed, the sitters fill the picture plane; their voluminous clothing creates a pyramidal composition that imbues the image with a sense of gravitas. The photographer has eliminated all semblance of motion, privileging their statuary presence.
 
LL/84804