History in the making: Malike Sidibe discusses his photography projects in depth in Nikon interview series

BY SELINA McCALLUM

At only 23 years old, Malike Sidibe is an award-winning photographer whose work has been featured in several exhibitions in New York. He has worked with The Met Museum, TIME, The New York Times Magazine, Business Week, Nike, Footlocker, Nikon,  and Instagram.

Sidibe was born in Man, Cote d’Ivoire and moved to Guinea when he was 3 years old. He fell in love with photography at age 12 when his father gave him his first camera. From Guinea, he moved to New York City in the summer of 2010 at the age of 13.

On Wednesday, June 17^th, the young, black and talented photographer was interviewed by Nikon’s own Mike Corrado, who has been working with Nikon for 35 years and a photographer for over 40.

Creator’s Hour: My Defining Images is a series by Nikon where they interview world-renowned photographers via video chat on the stories behind their very best photographs. Throughout the month of June, Nikon has been broadcasting original content and hosting activities meant to educate, inspire and entertain.

Near the start of the video, Sidibe discusses how he learned to use his camera. He thanks an after school program called NYC Salt that taught him how.

“Salt did a lot of things for me, so when talking about this topic, I don’t even know where to start. Since joining the program, they would give me assignments to go out and shoot and introduce me to editors in the photo industry,” said Sidibe. “They helped me find my passion for photography.”

Sidibe has done portraits, editorial, studio and creative set design photography.

After speaking on how he got started on his career in photography, Corrado brought up Sidibe’s defining photos to discuss every detail.

His work is a reflection of his creative nature. He draws inspiration from the people he meets and the places he has lived. He is a high-energy creative photographer producing innovative portraits and images full of spirit and colour.

The first photo Corrado brought up on to the screen is from Sidibe’s personal project called Mamiwata.

“Mamiwata is like this mythical goddess that is worshipped in West Africa. People believe that she lives in the water. She is spiritual and comes to you in your dreams,” said Sidibe. “Growing up, I just heard stories about her and she’s been around me all my life.”

On Sidibe’s website it states, “In Trinidad and Tobago Mami Wata plays the role of guardian of nature, punishing overzealous hunters or woodcutters. Those who have had encounters with her have described her energy in many ways.”

Sidibe says he stood over the model while she was in the water to take the photo. He completed the project while living in LA for a year. He joked about not being able to swim and was glad that the model, who was recommended by a friend of his, could swim.

The photographer truly knows how to capture images that make your eyes hungry for more. The colours that he brings out in his photos, and the emotion he captures is extraordinary.

Sidibe recently took photos of the Black Lives Matter protests happening in New York for the New York Times Magazine. He posted a few of the photos on his Instagram account, which has over 50 thousands followers.

“So grateful to see my work on the cover for @nytmag in print,” wrote Sidibe for his caption under the photo he posted on Instagram. “Thank you @kathyryan @bigbabygenius for my first major cover and spreads in this week’s issue. I am beyond humbled that you trusted me to tell this story through my lens. As a young black man the importance of this topic cannot be understated,” he wrote.

The photo is of a crowd of people on the street at night, while a man above them on a pole holds a long stick that is attached to the America flag. Spray painted in black on the flag is the words in big, bold, capital letters, “I can’t breathe”.

“This was an incredible opportunity that took me out of my comfort zone but this is a topic that needs to be addressed until real change comes and we all have to be a part of that change in ways that may make us uncomfortable sometimes,” wrote Sidibe.

To see more of Sidibe’s work, visit malikesidibe.com