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A Moroccan man (1913) José Tapiró y Baró was a Catalan painter. One of his closest friends was the painter Marià Fortuny with whom he shared an interest for Orientalism. He was a master of watercolor painting. Original Painting by José Tapiro y Baro.
Angelo Soliman (1721-1796) Angelo Soliman was born in the Sokoto State in modern Nigeria. He was taken captive as a child and arrived in Marseilles as a slave. He was given as a gift in 1734 to the imperial governor of Sicily. After the death of Prince Lobkowitz, Soliman was taken into the Vienna household of the Prince of Liechtenstein, eventually rising to chief servant. and royal tutor of the heir to the Prince, Aloys I. A cultured man, Soliman was highly respected and counted as a valued friend by Austrian Emperor Joseph II. Original Portrait by : Gottfried Haid based on an artwork by Johann Nepomuk Steiner
Kwasi Boakye (1827-1904) Kwasi Boakye was a Dutch mining engineer who was born a Prince of the Ashanti Empire. He was sent in 1837 by his king to the Nether- lands to receive education, as part of larger negotiations between Ashanti about the recruitment of Ashanti soldiers for the Dutch East Indies Army. He was trained as a mining engineer at the fore-runner of Delft Uni- versity, where he graduated in 1847. In 1850, he was sent to the Dutch East Indies.
Jean-Baptiste Belley (1746 – 1805) Jean-Baptiste Belley was a native of Senegal, born on the Island of Go- rée and former slave from Saint-Domingue in the French West Indies who bought his freedom with his savings. During the period of the French Revolution, he became a member of the National Convention and the Council of Five Hundred of France. He was also known as Mars. Original painting by Girodet
Don Miguel de Castro - Emissary of Congo, c. 1643-50. In 1643 or 1644 Don Miguel de Castro and two servants arrived as part of a delegation sent by the ruler of Sonho, a province of Congo, via Brazil to The Netherlands. One objective of the journey was to find a resolution to an internal conflict in Congo. Original painting attributed to Jaspar Beck or Albert Eckout.
Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (1701-1773) Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, also known as Job ben Solomon, was a famous Muslim who was a victim of the Atlantic slave trade. Born in Bun- du, Senegal (West Africa), Ayuba’s memoirs were published as one of the earliest slave narratives, that is, a first-person account of the slave trade. He was enslaved about two Years in Maryland; and afterwards being brought to England, was set free, and sent to his native Land in the Year 1734. Original painting by William Hoare
August Sabac El Cher (C.1836 - 1885) August Sabac el Cher was an early Afro-German who was given to Prince Albert of Prussia as a boy in 1843 when the Prince was in Egypt. August grew to be embraced as a Prussian and married a white woman. The family history of the Sabac el Cher is also the story of a family of soldiers in three different German armies: under the Kaiser, Hitler and Chancellor Adenauer. Original portrait by: Unknown Artist
Project Diaspora

Omar Victor Diop

Omar Victor Diop (b. 1980, Dakar, Senegal) developed his interest in photography at an early age and uses the medium to capture the diversity of modern African societies and lifestyles. Finding quick success with early conceptual projects, in 2012, he was encouraged to end a career in corporate communications to further pursue life as an artist.

With a body of work that includes fine art, fashion and portrait photography, including the globally heralded The Studio of Vanities, a series of staged portraits showing the new faces of art and culture scenes in African urban centres, Omar Victor enjoys mixing photography with other art forms, and uses costume design, styling and creative writing to give life to inspiration.

Nurtured in childhood by Afro-Caribbean literature chef-d’oeuvres, such as Maryse Condé and the characters in her novel Ségou, who have transformed from lives of “aliens” to notable figures in society.

Omar Victor sees this as a reflection of his own journey, that has sometimes found him in tiny minorities, seeking examples of adaptation to new contexts and ways of being.

He imagines art as the only conversation that will never end and takes inspiration from people who redefine their preferred futures daily, believing it is the only way to truly be exceptional and leave a footprint of value for humankind.

Omar Victor Diop currently lives in Dakar.

Exhibitions :

Encounters of African Photography (Bamako, 2011)

Biennial of African Contemporary Art (Dakar, 2012 & 2014)

Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie (Arles, 2012)

Biennial del Sur of Panama City (2013)

Paris Photo Los Angeles (2014)

1:54 Art Fair London (2014)

OFFicial (FIAC, Paris, 2014)

Paris Photo Paris (Paris, 2014)

Addis Photo Fest (Addis Ababa, 2014)

Art Geneva Fair (Geneva, 2015)