“Griot Basimana, Mali” (1970)

“Griot Basimana, Mali” (1970)

AP African American Studies Guide

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Topic1.6

Marli Shamir, “Griot Basimana of Mali” (1970)

A goateed Black man in a white robe and black kufi hat sitting with eyes closed, plucking a guitar made of a calabash squash.


Source: “Griot Basimana with guitar, Mali,” a photograph by Marli Shamir, taken in 1970 (Marli Shamir Collection, Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution)

Marli Shamir’s description of this photograph: “Republic of Mali, Griot Basimana, he was born blind with guitare from calabash (famous griot (= balade singer) for his rebellish songs before independance. But he remained a rebell and continued to sing accordingly after indenpendance. Therefore the first President of Mali, Bodibokeita forbade his songs to be heard in the radio. 1969, after the coup d'Etat. Modibokeita was arrested and Radio-Mali gave nothing else for the first day then the songs of Basima. So in the whole of Mali without a word, everybody knew that governement has changed.”

Discussion Questions

  1. The credit describes the instrument as a “guitar.” What makes this guitar different from the style most common in the twenty-first-century US? 
  2. What attitude is conveyed by Griot Basimana’s posture, facial expressions, and choice of pose? Read the caption, and explain to whom the caption’s author suggests Griot Basimana might be directing this attitude.
  3. In West Africa, griots pass down stories and tribal histories through their songs. What sort of tradition does this draw upon to share history this way as opposed to emphasizing the written word?