From Modern to Contemporary: Artists from the Horn of Africa and Diaspora is a wide-ranging exhibition featuring artists from Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan. These artists are brought together by CFHILL Art Space and Addis Fine Art for a large-scale exhibition in CFHILL Art Space in Stockholm, the first of its kind to take place in Scandinavia with artists from this region. Nineteen artists’ work will be on display, each of whom work in a range of mediums including sculpture, painting, textiles, video and photography.

In the past few decades, the international art world has responded to cultural pressure and turned its gaze to Africa. However, despite this surge of interest, artists hailing from the Horn of Africa are still largely overlooked. Addis Fine Art was founded in 2016 with precisely this raison d’être: to illuminate primarily artists from Ethiopia, but also from neighbouring countries which share cultural ties. It is at this key moment of interest in African contemporary art, that this exhibition shines a spotlight on some of the finest talents from this region and diaspora.

The exhibition is structured along thematic and chronological lines, divided into four sections: The Modernists, The Contemporary (mid-career), The Diaspora, and Emerging Artists. First is The Modernists, those highly regarded Ethiopian artists who first emerged from the Alle School of Fine Arts—the oldest art school in East Africa—in the 1970s. The Contemporary, mid-career artists who were largely taught by the Modernists. The Diaspora includes artists who have roots in the Horn of Africa, but are now located all over the world. In the final category, The Emerging artists, we encounter the new vanguard of contemporary artists that is currently emerging from the continent and the diaspora.

Participating artists: Tadesse Mesfin, Lulseged Retta, Merikokeb Berhanu, Tesfaye Urgessa, Addis Gezehagn, Adiskidan Ambaye, Ermias Kifleyesus, Tsedaye Makonnen, Daniela Yohannes, Tizta Berhanu, Selome Muleta, Girma Berta, Helina Metaferia, Tariku Shiferaw, Atong Atem, Girmachew Getnet, Nigatu Tsehay, Tegene Kunbi, Yasmeen Abdullah

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