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Ethiopian Artists Take to Global Art Scene

DUBAI —When Frenchman Leo Lefort first heard he was being assigned to be a curator in Ethiopia, he was horrified at the very thought. Despite his reservations about the place, he went on to 
Addis Ababa, capital city of Ethiopia — and was relieved to find it a “very beautiful city” and “everything but what people know of it.”

It’s been roughly 11 years since he made the move, and Lefort indicates he has no regrets. On the contrary, he is overwhelmed by the strong artworks that the country is now producing.

In Dubai for the Bastakiya Art Fair 2010, Lefort is one of the curators participating for the first time this year.

He will be showcasing the works of 14 Ethiopian artists, whose themes vary from refugees to land disputes — even falling angels. The projects he works on are interesting and powerful in their own right. Currently, he is working on one called Hotel Distopia , Room #25/55. Those, he says, are the coordinates you can find him on, if you were to enter them in Google Earth. “I’m trying to do the same project in other places too, such as New York and France.”

Speaking of the development of the arts in Ethiopia, he says the art market there is only “just emerging.” It’s a description heard most often in connection with Dubai’s own foray and expansion into the international arts and culture scene. But Lefort maintains that the 
two markets still differ greatly. “It’s much easier to hold an exhibition in Dubai,” he says. “You have the infrastructure needed to make exhibitions happen, from international artists to gallery spaces.”

Moreover, he was impressed by the way organisers of the Bastakiya Art Fair took care of everything, making sure he got what he needed seamlessly. On the other hand, he says, in Ethiopia, it would have taken three weeks to get things in — and even then, they wouldn’t meet requirements.

“Two years ago, I was working on a documentary on Ethiopian fine art — but I couldn’t find a producer. I suppose if you say ‘Ethiopia’ and the ‘Red Cross’, they’d go together, but ‘Ethiopia’ and ‘producer’ don’t seem to match,” he reflects, with a laugh. Nonetheless, he cautions they are not to be taken lightly. In the school of fine arts in Addis Ababa, where Lefort is teaching art history and aesthetics, 2,000 students compete every year for the 25 seats available. “Despite the obvious limitations, everyone here takes their work seriously.”

As a Frenchman in Ethiopia, has he ever considered moving his work back home? Lefort falls silent for a moment before answering, “I went back to France at one point and began looking for a job. But I realised that it was in Ethiopia that I wasn’t restricted to a box. This is the capacity of third world countries,” he says. “When you have to survive, you’ll do anything and everything. People used to ask me, ‘Why Ethiopia?’ But for me, it’s not identity that matters, or place — but it’s what you do that counts.”

karen@khaleejtimes.com