Is photography a Western technology or a universal language? This advanced seminar explores the histories and theories of photography in Africa focusing on selected artists and practices across the continent from the 1840s to the present. By considering a wide array of formats and genres—from the first daguerreotypes to contemporary archival interventions, from amateur practices to photojournalism—we will address the changing significance of the photographic image, its authors, sitters and consumers. We will discuss the relation between photography and other media such as sculpture; interpretations of photography as a tool of surveillance and trigger of emancipation; the tension between vernacular and high art practices. Readings will draw from a variety of disciplines and they include authors such as: Okwui Enwezor, Kobena Mercer, Ariella Azoulay, Achille Mbembe, Susan Sontag, Geoffrey Batchen, Tina Campt, and Manthia Diawara.