Debre Hayq Ethiopian Art Gallery




		Debre Hayq wishes you all a happy New Year, New Century, New Millennium

		MOTHER ETHIOPIA Aleka Gebre Selassie Adil In the visual arts as well as in secular literature, drama, poetry, and music, the symbolic representation of Ethiopia was, and is, a subject of the utmost importance... Esseye G Medhin, 1987

		PROTECTING THE FLAG Gebre Kristos Desta Gebre Kristos wanted to be a solder, and later in his youth, a scientist, but as an adult he became a painter. If he could not defend and protect his country as solder, nor perform scientific miracles for his country, he has still done both through in his works of art. Esseye G Medhin, August 17, 2001

		MOTHER ETHIOPIA Maitre Afewerk Tekle Only few of his contemporary artists and authors were committed to tell the inevitable dreadful story as it is. This is particularly true of Gebre Kristos Desta’s Gologotha, Skunder Boghossian’s The Nourishers, and Abe Gobegna’s novel Alleweledem. Esseye G Medhin, October 22,2002

		My Ethiopia Recent Paintings by Wosene Worke Kosrof The ancient, with their talismanic letters and spellbinding inscriptions were able to heal and protect the believers. The modern incorporates their writings, poetry and music, constantly swaying us to lament the condition of Emama Ethiopia. In the midst is the postmodernist work of Wosene. Esseye Medhin, February 8, 2004

		Ale Felege Selam The Modernization of Ethiopian Art Considering the national and international achievements of the school’s alumnae, and the growing public interest in art during the past fifty years, it is not an overstatement to dub Ale Felege Selam Ethiopia's Artist-Educator of the Century. Esseye G Medhin, May 29, 2007

		THE ETHIOPIAN Tecola W Hagos Artist and Patriot

		Bisrat Bekele: The Other Pioneer of Abstract Art Just like the best Ethiopian students of engineering, medicine, science or political science, the best Ethiopian artists of this period did not intend either to revitalize Ethiopian ancient practices and culture with the help of the new nor go against them. Rather, they wanted to use the new to advance the present.

		Contemporary Ethiopian Art: The New, Exit Generation Artists So far, no one has claimed with certainty if anyone from the new, exit generation has succeeded in making any kind of artistic originality or activist commitment. Perhaps it is that so many cultural activities are more effective in getting more attention, that visual art noise is irrelevant, inconceivable and incompatible in this postmodern flattened world.

		Artists’ Groups of the 1990s: Motivating Forces Behind Contemporary Ethiopian Art In light of the postmodern art world uncertainty, and considering the kind of education and training artists receive, perhaps before long the essential contemporary question will be this: Should 21st century Ethiopian artists prioritize their survival and their creative futures above all else?

		Elsabeth Atnafu: Artist who painted Celebration of Makeda Yet more importantly, by painting Celebration of Makeda, she seems to be making an allegiance—not to the tale of the Kibra Negast, her national or racial identity, which in any shape or form separate her from the community, but more so to her female identity.

		Contemporary Ethiopian Art for the Nation At present, there is no other logical option than to permanently display the nation’s contemporary art in its hundreds of schools, colleges, universities, libraries, city halls and other public, private, or government offices and community buildings.

		The State of Ethiopian Art in the Diaspora and its impact in the future The self — the ultimate desire of modernist artists — is probably perused to its utmost, more so by this generation of Diaspora Ethiopian artists than their predecessors.

		Lulseged Retta: A Renowned Artist Who Has Traveled Far from Addis Ababa to the Addis Art Galley in Los Angeles As Lulseged told me repeatedly, the exaggerated, wide opened eyes we see here, there, and everywhere in his work are not simple decorations or represent a pointless idea. They are pictogram of wisdom and symbols of the future still waiting to be hatched.

		Yohannes Tesfaye: The Abstract Expressionist of the Third- Generation Artists The Addis Art Gallery owner, Messai Haileluel describes Yohannes as a “seasoned painter.” In this post-modern age of ethnic cleansing, political and identity crises and religious fundamentalism, the sincerity and determination of Yohannes and his conscious decision to follow the tradition of Ethiopian modernists needs to be acknowledged.

		Getahun’s Musical Arada After the pluralistic artistic movements and flux of the ’90s, by applying or appropriating an artistic language used by a specific artist of a specific time and place, Getahun remained consistent to a specific influence and inspiration. He became successful, and his work served as a distinct guidepost and inevitable inspiration for his students.

		BLEN ANNUAL ART SHOW: Ethiopian Artists in America Like the last two shows, the upcoming 3rd Annual Blen Art show at the Reverend Martin Luther King Library, in Washington D. C., from January through February 2005 will be significant because there will be even more participants from the best and brightest expatriate Ethiopian artists.

		Julie Mehretu: Africa’s Gift to the 21st century Art World Julie Mehretu is surely one of the best artists of her generation. For better or for worse, if in the last century, Europe offered Picasso and the rest of the avant-garde artists to the art world, then simply put, Julie Mehretu can now be said to be one of the finest artists Africa has to offer to the 21st century art world.

		Contemporary Ethiopian Art and Globalization Thanks to many farsighted Ethiopian leaders, Modern Ethiopian artists of the last century were educated in almost every major city of the world. For contemporary Ethiopian Art, global is a fait accompli. Globalization, however, is more a question of artistic and cultural survival and avoiding artistic isolation than it is an unrealistic fight or inclusion in a destabilizing, and menacing international art market and commerce environment.

		Zerihun Yetmgeta His Artistic Odyssey During this time of artistic crises, when all the concerned groups seemed to be disorientated regarding artistic credibility (the state and case of Contemporary Ethiopian Art), it was time to prove Zerihun’s example, dedication, courage and perseverance by giving him a full-scale retrospective-- not for the sake of his reputation, but for the sake of the situation of Contemporary Ethiopian Art.

		Bekele Mekonnen The Breakthrough Years During the last fifteen years, we have witnessed several art trends and it is becoming increasingly more difficult to label an artist with one particular medium or style. The sculptor, the painter, the graphic artist or the photographer have all adapted untraditional mediums.

		Addis Art Presented the Paintings of Shiferaw Girma at the Del Mar Theater in Los Angeles Shiferaw Girma grew up creating art, and later he took art instructions from the most influential and qualified Ethiopian contemporary artists. The element of these artists can be found in many of his paintings - a rare and encouraging cultural achievement that is, however, scorned by some critics.

		A Tribute to Skunder Skunder Boghossian (Alex), one of the titans of African modernists, died on 4 May 2003 at the age of sixty-six. Born in Addis Ababa, Skunder was educated in Ethiopia and Europe. He was painting and design instructor at the Addis Ababa School of Fine Arts between 1966 and 1969.

		Abdel Rahman M Sherif Director of Addis Ababa School of Fine Arts and Secretary General of Ethiopian Artists’ Association Abdel Rahman M Sherif was born and raised in Addis Ababa by progressive and liberal parents and was initially trained at the Commercial School, Addis Ababa in the early 1950s. He worked at the school as a secretary and an administrator after his graduation while still a teenager. However, even at an early age he contemplated not to remain in that circumstance and tried his hand at drawing and painting.

		Worku Goshu in the1980s COMMEMORATING THE DEAD IN PAINTING The paintings of one of the prominent Ethiopian Modernist artists, Worku Goshu, in the 1980s, are specific meditations on themes and iconography taken from the Holy Scriptures and Christian art.

		Some late thoughts on the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Painting The interesting and intriguing artistic paradigm of the Ethiopian Church painting is its systematic resistance, negation and suspicion to dominating and threatening artistic forms. It remained an indisputable symbol of independence and survival, not only of the Church, but also of the Nation.

		Ethiopians Collecting Ethiopian Art One of the sad ironies in modern times is that those of us who ought to own and collect our cultural artistic heritage are rarely able to, and therefore we miss the opportunity to derive pleasure from the first-hand experience of it...

		Addis Ababa Art Scene Revisited Three decades ago, the art scene of Addis Ababa was dominated by the three maestros: Afewerk Tekle, Gebre Kristos Desta, and Skunder Boghossian, recipient of the Haile Selassie I fine arts award.

		Zerihun Yetmgeta Zerihun Yetmgeta is organizing his first retrospective show in Addis Ababa. In order to create a comprehensive exhibition, he has already begun borrowing and collecting works he has done since his school days in the 1960s and sold to collectors.

		Behailu Bezabih (Kine) Towards a New Realism Over the last ten years we have become all too familiar with the ways our contemporary artists express themselves. Behailu is one of these artists who is shaping the strategies of post revolution Ethiopian painting.

		Mezgebu Tessema Paying homage to the World of the Ethiopian Peasant The success of abstract, abstract expressionist and surrealist art in the 1960s and the sociopolitical conditions of the country created a crisis for major players of realistic art and to those interested in a naturalistic representation.

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		TADESSE MESFIN His Florida Connection - Symbolism of the Ancient "Exhibition of New Works by Ethiopian Artist" reads the statement on the invitation card mailed on the occasion of the opening of Tadesse Mesfin's exhibition at the Graphicstudio in Tampa, Florida.

		MULUGETA TAFESSE and the Provocative Object In 1981 Mulugeta left the Addis Ababa School of Fine arts, where he had been a student and later an instructor, to complete his studies in Sofia, and later in Antwerp and Tenerife, and to obtain MFA...

		KENFE MICHAEL BETHE SELASSIE A Romantic Artist In June 1995 Kenfe Michael's retrospective exhibition was inaugurated at the Musee des Beaux Arts in Chartres, France, a first for an African artist...

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