Merci Maman. Street photography in Mali

Using contemporary street photography, Merci Maman invites you to immerse yourself in the colourful world of the sotramas of Bamako. Like no other means of transport, the brightly painted minibuses are a dominant feature of the vibrant capital of Mali in West Africa. Named after the Societé du Transport Mali, they are the symbol of a fascinating cultural phenomenon.
Artistically created by bus painters, every sotrama bus is one of a kind and tells its own story. Paintings in rich colours reflect current trends and attitudes in Mali. Portraits of musicians, politicians and religious leaders as well as symbols and logos from the worlds of pop music, politics, sport and religion decorate the vehicles. And maxims and expressions of thanks (Merci Maman) are also on display.
The sotramas are a form of mobile art exhibition and street theatre and function as a barometer of the local mood. But they are also a place that enables people to meet and get talking and engenders a spirit of solidarity.
Merci Maman is based on around sixty photographs specially created for it by Seydou Camara, Monique Dena, Abdoul Karim Diallo, Sidiki Haidara and Anna N’Diaye. As members of the Yamarou Collective, they have been exploring this unique form of art on wheels for years. Their works however show not only the painted buses on the town’s roads but also their drivers and passengers.
The goal of the Yamarou collective founded by Seydou Camara is to take photography directly into the community. The Yamarists see themselves as defenders of social cohesiveness. They focus on the dignity of those portrayed and depiction of the stark realities of everyday life. Young people are encouraged by them to take conscious note of their surroundings and communicate this through photography.
With the exhibition the Museum Fünf Kontinente is endeavouring to support the Malian photography collective’s vision of communicating a differentiated picture of the West African country – as seen through the lens of its own population.
Merci Maman was put together in close cooperation with the artist and journalist Jonathan Fischer, who lives in Munich and Mali.

Last edited on 20.05.2025