Sidibe was born in Soloba, and studied in Bamako. He is reknowened for his black and white photography of 1960s Bamako. His works explores ideas of colonialism and popular culture in Mali, and he is seen as a major figure in African photography. The height of his recognition came in 2007 when he was awarde the Golden Lion lifetime achievement award at the 52nd Venice Biennale, which was the first time the award was gien to a photographer. He was had many high profile internal exhibtions including solo shows at the Hasselblad Center, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, and the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain. Furthermore his work has been included in group shows held at Tate Modern, Internationla Center of Photography and Museo Guggenheim de Arte Moderno y Contemporaneo.