How did you become a photographer? Would you define yourself as a one?

I’ve always found beautiful photographs very touching. When I was 13, my parents asked a professional photographer to come and take a family portrait at home. I was fascinated by what he was doing and asked him a thousand questions. I then started photography while studying graphic design and advertising in Casablanca, Morocco. When I returned to Abidjan, I worked as an art director in advertising for five years before I finally gave into my passion and became a full-time freelance photographer in 2008. I have since opened my own studio in Abidjan in the Ivory Coast. I like the idea of pushing the limits of this discipline and using different techniques. I define myself as a photographer because all my projects use photography as a base.

What drives you as a photographer?

My photography has always been a reflection of my observations and the social phenomena around me. At first glance, what appears to be a sort of documentation of life experiences and cultural facts is a testimony of many different emotions that people seem to glimpse. I would also say that over time, my photographic approach has become even more rooted in sociological observation and is placed somewhere between photography (art and visual technique) and a focus on documenting a number of social issues: the quest for identity, post-trauma adjustment strategies, beauty standards, etc.

Do you think there is such a thing as a ‘woman’s gaze’ in photography? Is this something you can relate to?

I am naturally drawn to certain issues. Or you could say perhaps that the way I see things is undeniably influenced by the way I have been shaped by society as a woman. This surely influences the way I look at other women’s stories, at transmission between the generations, at social rules imposed on them, and at the social realities that impact women (see my series Sissi Barra, Awoulaba/Taille fine, Resilients, etc.).

Has being a woman influenced your work as an artist in any way?

When I was a child, there weren’t very many role models. It was harder to picture yourself as a photographic artist because there were very few around me at the time. Also, the field of photography is very masculine, which can be challenging for a woman but not impossible. It can also be a challenge to balance work and family commitments. However, I do think that being a woman and more emotionally connected also has its advantages. It means that I am more comfortable with the subjects I photograph and can create a bond with women in particular. There is also the whole experience of being a woman in societies such as ours, all the issues, phenomena and realities that this entails influence what I express through my art.

Do you live off your art?

Yes.

Which authors have inspired you? Are there any women photographers among them?

When I started photography, I was really attracted to portraits and the great masters of portrait photography like Malick Sidibe and Seydou Keita but also Chester Higgins Jr and James Barnor. Of course, I liked the work of women photographers like Diane Arbus or Vivian Maier. Today, I greatly appreciate the work of my contemporaries: women photographers from the African continent and the diaspora such as Aida Muluneh, Angelica Dass, Sarah Waiswa , Macliné Hien or Fatoumata Diabaté, and Zohra Opoku (whose work also blends textiles and photography).