As of May 16th, Christophe Person Gallery in the heart of Paris is presenting TATI, an exhibition of iconic avant-garde French-Cameroonian photographer Samuel Fosso. The gallery will reveal the complete series that Fosso did in 1997 of the famous TATI boutique located in the 18th district in Paris. To celebrate the 50 anniversary of this brand, the photographer will display 10 self-portraits where he explored the role of various archetypes, from the Liberated American Woman to the Golf Player and the Rocker. Humorous and biting, these images profoundly call into question the concepts of personal and social identity. Although the genre of autofiction, and more specifically self-portraiture, has been widely used by artists since the 1970s, Samuel Fosso gives this practice a new dimension, one that is all at once political and historical, fictional and intimate

Born in 1962 in Cameroon, Samuel Fosso began as a photographer at a very young age, working in the studio tradition of Seydou Keïta and Malick Sidibé. He became known for his self-portraits and photographic performances and gained international recognition when he participated in the first edition of the Rencontres de Bamako photography festival in 1994. Embodying key historical figures and social archetypes in front of the camera has become for him not only a way of existing in the world but also a clear demonstration of the power of photography to construct myths.

 

Samuel Fosso – TATI
From May 16 to June 10 2023