Indigo, Mali
Lisa Kristine

The Niger River snakes from its origin in Guinea, through Mali to Niger, and on. Old wooden pinasses and pirogue boats continue to carry cargo along the monotonous, wide ribbon of water. In between destinations, the shores are often deserted and void of any habitation or vegetation. Rare villages appear along the shores inevitably bustling with people and activity. The Fulani, also known as, Puel, are one of the three main peoples in Mali. They customarily live in mud baked villages beside the river in the central region of Sub-Saharan Mali. This gentleman, cloaked in Indigo cloth, the traditional textile of Mali, is the Fulani Chief of one of these extraordinary villages.