Self-Portrait at Home
During his career Oumar Ka produced dozens of carefully composed self-portraits. Here, he has lowered his glasses and placed a pen in his pocket, and wears a hat that identifies him as a Sufi follower of the Senegalese Saint Amadou Bamba. As in most of his portraits, Ka articulates his persona through his surroundings. We can see the internal architecture of the thatch-roof house, the wardrobe, and dozens of portraits hanging behind him. Printed in multiple copies, Ka gave his self-portraits as gifts to his best customers as a conscious marketing strategy to please and reward his clientele. This portrait presents Ka as a professional photographer, conscious of his art, strategic about his business, and aware of his image.
Artwork Details
- Title: Self-Portrait at Home
- Artist: Oumar Ka (Senegalese, 1930–2020 Touba, Senegal)
- Date: 1959–1968
- Medium: Film, emulsion
- Dimensions: 2 1/4 × 2 1/4 in. (5.7 × 5.7 cm)
- Classifications: Negatives, Photographs
- Credit Line: Funds from various donors, 2015
- Object Number: N.A.2015.10
- Rights and Reproduction: © Oumar Ka Family Estate
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing
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