The Kunstpalast presents the first solo exhibition by Ethiopian artist Elias Sime (b. 1968) in the German-speaking world. Since his participation in the 2022 Venice Biennale at the very latest, Sime has achieved widespread international recognition and his work is represented in the collections of over forty museums worldwide, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Based in Addis Ababa, Sime is still considered a recent discovery in Germany.

The show at the Kunstpalast brings together thirty-six large-format works by Sime, which trace his artistic development from the early 2000s to the present. The monumental collages and wall reliefs, created from everyday objects and discarded electronic components, draw attention to the influence of technology and its impact on our consumer society.

The process of collecting materials and the journeys the components have made always play an important role in Elias Sime’s work. He sources electronic waste from all over the world in his hometown and prefers to collect material that has already passed through many hands. The found objects are pre-sorted, processed, and mounted on small wooden panels before Sime arranges them into images in close collaboration with his team. Here, the often expansive compositions are based on the artist’s sketches.

Sime’s works, which are partly figurative, partly abstract, and even sometimes ornamental, are characterised by a luminous palette and expressive lines. The collages often resemble a bird’s eye view onto landscape forms that bear traces of human civilisation. Ethiopia’s flora and fauna regularly appear in the images, where the traditional symbolism of the animals and mythical creatures play an important role. Apart from the thematic references to Ethiopian culture, Sime also deploys a variety of traditional practices, such as in the plaited cables and embroidered motifs, as well as historical carving, weaving and building techniques.

Sime’s works are about universal human experiences and address a global audience – the topics that interest him concern us all.
The Zoma Contemporary Art Center in Addis Ababa plays a central role in Sime’s oeuvre. It was founded in 2002 together with the curator, writer and anthropologist Meskerem Assegued, with whom Sime still collaborates closely to this day. They constructed several areas for artists and the interested public while observing traditional Ethiopian building techniques, which they continue to expand in close collaboration with their team. In addition to a gallery and accommodations, the site includes a library, restaurant, primary school, kindergarten, botanical garden, and agricultural facilities. Zoma also combines three elements which are fundamental to Sime’s art: the connection to his native city, his engagement with Ethiopian and international ways of living, and his efforts to break down the boundaries between architecture, sculpture, and arts and crafts. The Swiss art historian and curator Hans Ulrich Obrist describes the complex as a Gesamtkunstwerk. Visitors to the exhibition can get a sense of these spaces via two films that will be on view.

All of Sime’s works are based on collaboration, which is also a key part of his studio practice in Addis Ababa. For the exhibition, a workshop room was set up in advance with the help of three Düsseldorf school classes – a space of encounter where events and activities can take place. In the middle of the show, this open studio invites visitors to experiment with the artist’s materials and techniques as well as create their own works.

The exhibition was initiated by the Arnolfini in Bristol and has been further developed for the Kunstpalast. Curator: Felicity Korn, Head of the Collection of 20th and 21st Century Art, Kunstpalast.

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