ABSTRACT

Elias Sime is one of the most prolific living contemporary artists in Ethiopia. Elias' works have been exhibited in such major international art events as the 2004 Dak'Art Biennale; ‘Green Flame’ in the ‘New Crowned Hope Festival’ directed by Peter Sellars; ‘Flow’ curated by Christine Kim at the Studio Museum of Harlem; and ‘The Essential Art of African Textiles: Design Without End’ curated by Alisa LaGamma at the Metropolitan Museum New York. In 2009 ‘Elias Sime: Retrospective, 1990 to present’ will be curated by Peter Sellars and Meskerem Assegued at the Santa Monica Museum of Art in Los Angeles. His wooden chairs will be the stage furniture for the opera Oedipus Rex with the LA Philharmonic Orchestra in the Walt Disney Concert Hall. This article is a pictorial analysis of the artist's work and life with detailed descriptions of selected pieces.