Aboubakar Fofana

Aboubakar Fofana was born in Mali in 1967 and moved to France at an early age.
As a child in West Africa, he was told about green leaves that made blue colours. Years later, already a successful calligrapher, artist and graphic designer living in France, he remembered this story, and started on a long journey to understand indigo and his African heritage.
His work reflects the living materials he uses, harnessing their cycles of birth, life and decay, and the seasonal rhythms of nature. His indigo vats are alive,, the colour a visible imprint of these natural cycles, and the most challenging part of his work is understanding and working with the living things to allow these colours to become visible. Fofana's professional life is dedicated to preserving the traditions of fermented indigo dyeing, along with other West African textile techniques and indigenous materials.