Kletigui Dembele is a member of the Groupe Bogolan Kasobane, a collective of Malian artists: Dembele, Kandioura Coulibaly, Souleymane Goro, Baba Keita, Boubacar Doumbia, and Nene Thiam. They have worked together since studying painting at the Institute National des Arts in Bamako in the 1970s. While traveling through Mali and researching the traditions and practices of the Bogolan, the group discovered that the structures and colors of bogolan cloths carry specific teachings. Using natural materials native to Mali, the group abandoned modern painting in favor of bogolan techniques. They transformed the traditional craft of making clothing from mud-cloth into a fiber art form with innovative compositions, styles, and uses of color. Their collective work is intimately tied to the community tradition of Malian society as well as the dynamic practice of contemporary Malian art.
