Paul Kodjo
Paul Kodjo (4 July 1939 – 7 August 2021) was an Ivorian photographer. Kodjo was best known for his photographs taken in Abidjan during the 1970s, following the Ivory Coast's independence from France. He has been called the "father of Ivorian photography".
Paul Kodjo
- Born
- Paul Kodjo was born on 1 January 1939. · Abidjan.
- Died
- Paul Kodjo died in 2021. · Abidjan.
- Nationality
- Ivory Coast
- Occupation
- photographer
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Paul Kodjo (4 July 1939 – 7 August 2021) was an Ivorian photographer. Kodjo was best known for his photographs taken in Abidjan during the 1970s, following the Ivory Coast's independence from France. He has been called the "father of Ivorian photography".
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wikidata · Q108180557 · wikipedia · Paul Kodjo
In this article
Early life
Early life
Kodjo was born in 1939, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast; his mother was Ghanaian and his father was Ivorian. He had his first job as a photographer in Ghana. He later moved to France, where he worked as a correspondent for Fraternité-Matin, an Ivorian publication. During this time he was one of the only Black photographers to document the May 1968 student protests in Paris.
Career
Career
In 1970, Kodjo returned to the Ivory Coast, where he worked a photojournalist. He founded a media agency, and created fictional photographic works such as Photo-romans for the magazine Ivoire Dimanche. In 1973 he received the Grand Prize for International Photographic Reporting. In the 1990s Kodjo gave up photography. He later entrusted his negatives to the photographer Ananias Léki Dago. Dago worked with the Goethe Institute to restore the negatives, and was instrumental in bringing greater recognition to Kodjo's work. His work is included in the collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario.
Death
Death
Paul Kodjo died on 7 August 2021, at the age of 82.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1939
Paul Kodjo born at Abidjan.
2021
Paul Kodjo died at Abidjan.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Paul Kodjo was born at Abidjan.
Birthplace
Paul Kodjo died at Abidjan.
Deathplace
Abidjan.
Birth place
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Paul Kodjo”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q108180557: Paul Kodjo
General reference · Wikidata
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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