Addis art gallery - Fine Art Gallery

Addis art gallery

One is struck immediately by the exuberance and implied physicality of Yohannes Tesfaye’s paintings. There are no self-imposed limitations, no endless variations on successful themes. This artist is exploring and doing so with a great deal of confidence and joy.

Schooled in classical technique and traditional subject matter, Yohannes stayed within these academic restrictions just long enough to complete his formal education (he received his Diploma from the Addis Abeba University Fine Arts School in 2001). Having been captivated by making art as a boy, he realized that his education had taken him far from those early passionate experiences. It was that child-like energy he wished to recapture. So, having learned the rules, he set about breaking them.

Finding inspiration in both the man-made and natural world, Yohannes allows himself complete freedom of _expression, unhindered by shape, size, or dimension. He moves from the confines of a two-dimensional, rectilinear space, breaking out into polygonal explorations. That leads to building up the surface first with paint and then by adding three-dimensional elements of various materials. While it may be tempting to compare some of his surfaces to those of that other master of drip-painting, Yohannes invented the technique to emulate the spider’s web, which still holds endless fascination for him. He did not encounter the paintings of Jackson Pollack until he reached America less than a year ago.

It is his relative isolation from the icons of contemporary art that make this body of work so interesting to contemplate and behold. There is feral energy and a freedom from intellectualization that speaks directly to observers and rewards them with a rare and honest talent.