Itinerant Images of Banned Potentates from West Africa

Abstract French colonial expansion in West Africa begins at the end of the 19th century. Images of the surrender and deportation of African potentates like Samory Touré (c.1830-1900) and Béhanzin (1845-1906) were reproduced in the French illustrated press. The visual representation of the enemies of colonial empires is part of a imaginary occupation in West Africa. Through the comparative method of analysis on the (re) production, diffusion and reception of images, the visual representation of these defeated African potentates is part of a logic of imaginary occupation of West Africa. The study also show how the same colonial iconography was used to build heroic figures of the African resistance. Based on images by Béhanzin and Samory Touré in the illustrated press and other material supports, the article discusses the new paths of this iconography in a post-colonial context.