Geography of the Soul

This work is about the geography of the mind: the sense of belonging and identity that situates the self in this world. 

In the last year my work has taken me back to Ethiopia, where I grew up. The pandemic, so cruel to so many, has provided me the blessing of time, a long period of confinement with a press, my tools and ink, my memories, and the wisdom of fellow artists. The imagery and methods I use are specific to Ethiopia. Objects and motifs refer to architectural detail in churches, monasteries and domestic structures, commonly used objects, cultural practices and ceremonies. The shapes and rhythms feel deeply familiar to me. 

I work with woodblock relief printing, which naturally lends itself to the slow, tactile process of remembering.  Layering and manipulating the images allows disparate images to color each other, to meld into one, or to metamorphize, as memories do.  

Woodcut and Collage

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Donec vulputate euismod porta. Donec viverra nisl interdum consectetur lacinia. Interdum et malesuada fames ac ante ipsum primis in faucibus. Aliquam erat orci, ultricies et consectetur at, luctus vitae ex. Praesent augue ex, elementum scelerisque ultrices in, efficitur et libero. Aenean ornare rhoncus mauris vel convallis. Proin a rutrum nunc.