When Eritrean painter Noah Mulubrhan crossed into Ethiopia last year, he had little desire to stay – and even less of an expectation that the move would be a boon to his career.
The 35-year-old was taking advantage of the sudden rapprochement between the two countries to visit the grave of his long-dead father in Addis Ababa, something he had been unable to do earlier because of the stalemate resulting from the 1998-2000 border war.
During his visit he was captivated by the country’s buzzing art scene and decided to join more than a dozen other Eritrean artists and musicians who are trying to make their mark on Ethiopian cultural life.
Noah recently concluded his first solo show of 35 acrylic paintings — some of them street scenes, others abstract meditations on concepts like hope.
Art can be a vehicle for Eritreans and Ethiopians to celebrate all they have in common, from language to religion to culture, Noah told AFP.
“You live by sharing ideas. You live by preaching the peace. You live by preaching the love,” he said. “So we can use art to reunite all the people.”
– Ethiopian exposure –
On Tuesday Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed will accept the Nobel Peace Prize in large part for setting the peace process with Eritrea in motion back in June 2018, a move that stunned observers at home and abroad.
The early fruits of this daring initiative were remarkable.
After Abiy and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki met and embraced on a tarmac in Asmara, the Eritrean capital, they reopened embassies, resumed flights and held a series of meetings across the region.
But the initial optimism fuelled by these gestures has faded, and citizens of both countries complain that they are still waiting for meaningful change.
The Isaias government, widely considered one of the world’s most repressive, is sticking by policies like compulsory national service, which forces thousands of Eritreans into military training even before they finish secondary school.
There has been no visible progress on demarcating the two countries’ 1,000-kilometre (600-mile) shared border.
And mere months after they opened, border crossings like the one Noah used to enter Ethiopia were closed again with no explanation.
By showing their own work and collaborating with Ethiopians, Eritrean artists offer a vivid counterpoint to claims that peace has yielded few benefits for ordinary people.
For Nebay Abraha, a 23-year-old Eritrean artist now living in Addis Ababa, peace has been a godsend.
Nebay entered Ethiopia via the dusty border town of Zalambessa over a year ago.
Once in Addis, he met up with Ethiopian painters he was already friends with on Facebook.
They have since helped him find space in two group exhibitions for his mixed-media collages and portraits that incorporate materials ranging from charcoal to magazine clippings.
It’s a far cry from toiling in obscurity in Asmara, where he says there was little hope of selling much work or getting international exposure.
“If there was no peace I wouldn’t have this chance,” he said. “I would be forced to stay and protect Eritrea. So peace is the most important thing in my opinion.”
– ‘Unfinished business’ –
Life is not all roses for the group of Eritrean artists trying to build new lives in Ethiopia.
In Asmara, Nebay had an apartment and a separate studio, but these days he works out of his cramped living space on the outskirts of Addis.
One recent afternoon, he stood at an easel set up mere inches from his mattress and a small crate that held his coloured pencils and pastels, as well as pasta and other groceries.
He said life was even harder for older artists who are in some cases leaving their families behind, but that the opportunities Ethiopia provides make the sacrifice worth it.
“I don’t have regrets because I have been able to show my work here,” he said.
Like many other Eritrean artists in Addis, both Noah and Nebay produce largely apolitical work and are reluctant to comment on political developments in Eritrea, where they both hope to live again one day.
But they are heavily invested in the success of the peace deal and hope their work can move the process along.
Noah is currently seeking sponsors for an exhibition that would feature Eritrean and Ethiopian artists side-by-side.
“I would like to share the experience that I have gotten here,” he said. “So collaborating with artists from both countries is very important.”
As for the Nobel, Noah said Abiy deserves it despite the peace deal’s slow implementation.
“There is unfinished business. We are waiting. It is a process, I know,” he said. “Everything happens in time.” (France 24)
Eritrean artists profit from peace to make their mark on Ethiopia
Kidist Abera
Name: Kidist Abera
Education: Diploma in fashion
Company name: Kidist design
Title: Founder
Founded in: 2017
What it does: Designing
HQ: Addis Ababa
Number of employees: Five
Startup Capital: 2,000 birr
Current Capital: Growing
Reasons for starting the business: Passion for designing
Biggest perk of ownership: Creating job opportunity
Biggest strength: Commitment
Biggest challenging: Capital and inputs
Plan: To build well known fashion designing center
First career: None
Most interested in meeting: D/Mayor Takele Uma
Most admired person: My mother
Stress reducer: Listening motivational speeches and Praying
Favorite past time: Spending time with family
Favorite book: Bible
Favorite destination: Turkey
Favorite automobile: Toyota Prado
A summary
Over the years we have looked in this column at some cultural dimensions that influence the way we interact with investors and potential business partners from other parts of the world. More especially we looked at how we relate differently to other people, time and the environment. With Ethiopia’s private sector increasingly connecting to foreign markets, Ethiopian and foreign business people need to interact more often and intensely. They need to understand each other well. The chance that things go wrong here is real and present. Different interpretations, different approaches, different expectations may cause business deals to go sour, spoil relationships and result in loosing the opportunities so desperately looked for. Knowing more about the culture of the people we deal with will help if we want to avoid that things go wrong. I want to summarize some important observations as follows:
Ethiopians in general are people who find relationships very important. They are well known for their hospitality and hosting guests. An expatriate myself, I have enjoyed numerous invitations for dinner, and family occasions like weddings and baptism of a baby. I have attended funerals as well and learned the importance of being together in times of grief. The social networks are an enormous asset to this country, as compared to the rather poor individualism of some cultures in the west. In dealing with foreigners, the focus in the first instance is thus on building that relationship, finding out who this potential business partner is and whether (s)he can be trusted: the heart of the matter so to speak. An investment well it’s worth while. The foreigner on the other hand will have more confidence in the relationship when the business deal is written in black and white. Contracts are widely used and accepted internationally. Building a good relationship is a strength that Ethiopians can capitalize on while negotiating a deal in which both parties feel comfortable.
We also realised that in Ethiopia we don’t consider time in the same way as foreigners do. After all these years, I still get nervous when I am running late for an appointment, while my Ethiopian friends are so much more relaxed about it, comfortable with the abasha ketero. Where Ethiopians are poly-chronic, visitors from abroad may be mono-chronic or sequential. This means that many Ethiopians are used to handle several things at the same time, while the visitor focuses on one issue at a time before moving on to the next. (S)he will not be happy if you allow yourself to be interrupted continuously, while having a meeting together, especially not if you came late to begin with. And please, do switch off your mobile telephone. That will allow you to focus your attention and to use the little time for this meeting much more effectively. Our visitor on the other hand may try to relax a bit more and allow you to attend to a few issues before your meeting. Planning a few more days for the business trip will help as well.
Be also prepared to find yourself dealing with younger delegates. Coming from a society where one may be appreciated for what you know and not who you know, a younger person may indeed have the delegated authority to negotiate an important business deal. (S)he will have earned that status by achievement as compared to the status of ascription, more common here. I have noticed that it becomes even more challenging when the other person is a woman. Very few Ethiopian men appreciate or accept that women are capable of running a successful business. They don’t give her that status by achievement. My advice: put your prejudices aside and get on with the business.
We also looked at how we relate to our environment and realised that while visitors from some western countries have learned to control their environment and thus their market. They take the initiative when meeting their potential business partners, Ethiopians are more likely to kick the tyres a bit first and adjust to changes that influence their lives. Again, our visitor is advised to slow down a bit and take some time to understand the context a bit better before having an opinion or a solution. Pushing your way too hard may turn your potential partner away. Ethiopians in their turn could come forward a bit more readily and speak out. Tell what you want out of the business deal and be clear about it.
Finally, most people, including myself, become defensive when getting feed back about their behaviour. This is no less so in Ethiopia and I am sure that some readers will question and deny my observations. My advice: accept feed back as it comes and reflect on what the other person is saying. There may be some truth in it. Learn from it and use it to your advantage.
This is the last article in this column on “Doing Business in Ethiopia”. Over the years we have tried to look at different contexts and ways of doing business in this fast growing and changing market. There are no blueprints and there certainly are no blueprints we can import from other parts of the world. What we can do is learn from other markets and adept strategies to our own context. In order to do that effectively, we need to make sure we are exposed and informed and we need to be aware of the differences. Adapting what seems to work elsewhere to our unique context will help in doing business in a better way. And remember, whatever business you are in, do it in a sustainable way, doing no harm to the environment and most importantly your customers.
Wishing all readers good business prospects!
ton.haverkort@gmail.com
A TESTAMENT TO TIME
Ethiopia is blessed with many extraordinary artists, and thought the ones trending certainly deserve the shine, we can never forget from whence we came and upon whose shoulders the 21st generation of artists stands. So as we look forward to the new year and all it has to offer in 2020, let us reflect on a few leading Ethiopian artists from the 20th century. Negash Wolde Amanuel was known for his photography clubs in the 1950’s, shortly after the Italian occupation was crushed by His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I. Negash lived in the capital city and acquired his first box camera, introduced after the Korean War, as a gift from his sister. By the late 50’s he would travel to Canada to attend O’Sullivan Business School in Montreal but then reality kicked in and he was off to study at the New York School of Photography. The sharp eyed photographer was then scooped up by Time Life Corporation but after a five year stint, returned home to Ethiopia to work at the Ethiopian Tourism Commission. According to Revue Noir, Negash’s work is divided into three categories; Studio portraits, outdoor photography and sports photography. So for you photo fans, Negash Wolde Amanuel is a name to now when speaking of Ethiopian photographers.
Tadesse Gizaw is another name which is meaningful to me personally as I have two of his works in my personal collection. Tadesse was born in 1935 and graduated from both the Technical School of Addis Abeba and Pratt Institute of Industrial Design in New York City. Known as a sculptor, he was also a designer and inventor, “whose house was transformed in a laboratory-studio. Prototypes, spare pieces, cutting machines, everything is home-made…the objects became sculptures…” and useful items such as the first Amharic typewriter, according to Revue Noir. However for visitors to the National Theater, it’s his exquisite metal and wire sculptors that most will recall for their graceful, timeless and formidable expression of the Ethiopian modern art movement.
Tibebe Terffa was born in 1948 in Harar and graduated from the now Alle School of Fine Art and Design, creating works which according to Tibebe, ‘translates art, life, world’ in words and images. He is definitely known as a philosopher and one conversation with the conscious and connected artist, especially in his foliage filled garden, leaves you in awe. He is not into trends nor does he follow the pack, instead he leads. Girma Hiwet is another name to remember. Just last month his widow Christine participated in a handover ceremony at the National Museum of Ethiopia where several of his works were received by the national institution. Girmay was born in 1949 and sadly passed away last year. Though he studied at Alle School of Fine Art and Design, he settled in Zurich where he would create some of his greatest masterpieces that have been exhibited widely in museums. A contemporary of his was Yohannes Gedamu who moved to Kenya after graduating from the Fine Art School. After three years in the East African haven for many fleeing the Derg, he went to Cologne Germany where he remained for decades until returning home in the early 2000 and passed over seven years ago. His works were powerful abstract statements with rich organic coloration that can be found in the Sheraton Hotel Addis and several top private collections.
I close with Skunder Boghossian, born in 1937 in Addis Abeba; a student of St. Martin’s Central, the Slade in the UK and the Ecole des Baux-Arts in Paris during the mid 20th century. It was there the curious artist’s social intellect would be challenged and would mushroom due to the plethora of Pan African and Negritude Movement figures he would come to know. He is said to have defined the Ethiopian modern art movement. “He begins a painting by deliberately creating accidental effects and included painted scrolls on a vibrant background which became his distinguished mark. His works are enriched with symbols, motifs, forms and shapes drawn from his won Ethiopian heritage.” His work was exhibited world wide and he has participated in countless prestigious international art fairs including the Biennale de Paris at the Muse d’Art Modeme in 1965, Festival des Art Negres, Dakar, 1966 and le Biennale Sao Paulo in 1965. His work is unceremoniously displayed at the Hilton Hotel lobby.
The purpose of this article is to evoke thoughts and curiosity into the history and development of Ethiopian art, hopefully inspiring collectors and artists alike, to glean if not to better understand with whom and how Ethiopian art has evolved and hence its trajectory. Too often we take our past for granted always appreciating the new, until it is not, but balance and true value for Creatives and their outstanding creations are a testament to this great nation.
Dr. Desta Meghoo is a Jamaican born
Creative Consultant, Curator and cultural promoter based in Ethiopia since 2005. She also serves as Liaison to the AU for the Ghana based, Diaspora African Forum.
