ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some of the characteristics of artefacts in many developing countries, the ambiguous nature of their identity and the many phases they go through in the hands of those who have learned the way to divert the biographies of artefacts. It looks at a highly visible and tangible level, the art and craft of the bricoleur relates to the physical reality of working with technology or artefacts. The chapter relies on the findings of research in West Africa, and addresses almost exclusively the sphere of photography. It explores the register of actions and social skills necessary for people to piece together functional practices. Street photography is a practice related to Ghanaian know-how, to a specific technology and, in recent years, the production of ID pictures. For the practice of mobile photography, being a bricoleur has primarily involved social interaction with the clients and the colour processing labs.
