Tesfaye Urgessa

November 28, 2022 - November 12, 2023

Tesfaye Urgessa (b. 1983, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, lives and works in Nürtingen, Germany)

In Tesfaye Urgessa's work, there is a mute reciprocity between the observer and the observed that shifts the power dynamics and the notion of agency and race. Drawing on his childhood memories of Ethiopia, each composition is derived from the depths of Urgessa’s subconscious, where disjointed images of emigration transcend to the outside world and onto the canvas.

Let Go Of Your Claim on Me 1, 2022
oil on canvas
98 3/8 x 236 1/4 in, 250 x 600 cm
acquired in 2022

The Strange Host, 2022
oil on canvas
78 3/4 x 78 3/4 in. / 200 x 230 cm
acquired in 2022

Two Twins, 2022
oil on canvas
78 3/4 x 78 3/4 in. / 200 x 230 cm
acquired in 2022