Born in 1972 in Tikaré (Burkina Faso), Christophe Sawadogo studied art and communication at the University of Ouagadougou from 1992 to 1997. He then trained as an art critic at the University of Dakar in Senegal in 1999, but soon left theory behind to devote himself entirely to painting. Passionate about poetry and calligraphy, his first works are devoted to drawings on paper, in Indian ink or coloured pencil, creating a universe where characters float, told or dreamt.
Christophe Sawadogo treats letters as plastic objects, composing scenes where characters mingle with mysterious sentence fragments. His characters are often women, whose courage and endurance he wishes to honour. To this end, he works on the smallest details, from the loincloth to the hairstyle, and succeeds in creating atmospheres of astonishing serenity where sunshine yellow inks blend with deep blues, warm oranges and diaphanous greens.