Video
Women Artists Rising Above Anonymity
Women Artists Rising Above Anonymity
Artists’ Talk
Five burgeoning women artists discuss the challenges of gaining recognition in the highly competitive and male dominated art world. Featuring: Maya Freelon Asante, Elsa Gebreyesus, Jamea Richmond-Edwards, Lynda Smith-Bugge and Sigrid Vollerthun. Moderator: Myrtis Bedolla
Exhibition Video
Afruika Artist Talk
Afruika: The Primal Source
Artist Talk: Elsa Gebreyesus makes her solo debut in Af.Rui.Ka: The Primal Source, a visual narrative of her experiences in and of Africa. Inspired by modern artists from Ethiopia and Eritera who incorporate Fidel, their ancient writing system, Gebreyesus interprets these symbols using her unique language, textures and themes.
Exhibition Video
Abstraction: The Syncopation of Light, Color and Form –…
Abstraction: The Syncopation of Light, Color and Form
Artists’ Talk: Artists assert their creative voices through textured canvases rich with vibrant hues, and sculptures which free the inherent beauty of the natural stone. Drawing from their intuitions and imaginations, the artists form rhythmic patterns employing light and color to explore social issues, and the metaphysical and spiritual realm.
Featured Artists: David Carlson, Calvin Coleman, Elsa Gebreyesus, Michael Gross, M. Scott Johnson and Jeffrey Kent.
Video
Elsa Gebreyesus – Video
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Uncategorized
Elsa Gebreyesus – Bio
Biography
Elsa Gebreyesus lived in Ethiopia, Kenya, and United States before going on to receive her BA from Brock University in Ontario, Canada. After Eritrea won its independence from Ethiopia, she lived there for five years, working as a Project Officer with an indigenous women’s organization. After leaving Eritrea, she came to the U. S. where she’s been pursuing her career and her lifelong passion for art.
In addition to her work and art, she also volunteers with organizations involved with human rights issues especially in Africa. She continues to learn from artists she admires and has been greatly influenced by modernist painters from both Africa and the West.
Elsa Gebreyesus currently lives with her husband and two children in Fairfax, VA.
Artist
Elsa Gebreyesus – Statement
Elsa Gebreyesus
view the exhibition | artist talk
Statement
Each of my paintings starts with a loose sketch, landscape or object and is built up with layer upon layer of paint. Often it will be in a state of chaos before the process of adding and subtracting begins. I do not start with an end in mind when I begin a painting, instead the challenge is to find the end. This process to me is a type of meditation – an intimate conversation between the materials and myself.
I am drawn to abstract compositions because they require us to stop and reflect, to ask questions. Abstract art is also open to multiple interpretations. Each viewer will bring his or her own experiences into play as they contemplate the work. This adds another dimension to the artwork, a sort of interactive communication that flows from the artist, to the painting and eventually the viewer.
In some of my paintings I use collage to enhance the surfaces of the canvases. I enjoy working with acrylic paint because of its versatility enabling me to work in light washes or thick applications. Drawing media in the paintings are caran d’ache and graphite. Some pieces incorporate text from my native language, Tigrinya. I also use sand and other texture media all part of the process of building visual stories that reflect experiences and internal states.
Tigrinya is one of the official languages spoken in Eritrea, a small East African country. It has a phonetic writing system consisting of symbols that represent syllables. Using these symbols in my paintings reflects my connection to my cultural heritage and enables me to express my views about the current situation in Eritrea.
Uncategorized
Elsa Gebreyesus
I am drawn to abstract compositions because they require us to stop and reflect, to ask questions. Abstract art is also open to multiple interpretations. Each viewer will bring his or her own experiences into play as they contemplate the work.
Exhibitions
Afruika-The Primal Source
In The Beginning (detail) by Elsa Gebreyesus
Afruika: The Primal Source
September 18 – October 16, 2010
artwork | watch artist talk | about Elsa Gebreyesus
Elsa Gebreyesus makes her solo debut in Af.Rui.Ka: The Primal Source, a visual narrative of her experiences in and of Africa. Inspired by modern artists from Ethiopia and Eritera who incorporate Fidel, their ancient writing system; Gebreyesus interprets these symbols using her unique language, textures and themes.
Also featured in the exhibition is a series of paintings titled Silenced, which addresses the human rights issues in Eritrea. Paintings in the Silenced series were selected to participate in the first ever Amnesty International Human Rights Festival held in Silver Spring, Maryland in April 2010.
Artwork
