A series of proud figures appear vibrantly dressed in elaborate, traditional costumes, while their faces are veiled by black. For this latest body of work, Ethiopian artist Wendimagegn Belete has appropriated black and white ethnographic imagery, which he enlarged, digitally manipulated and then printed, before hand-colouring details to create vibrant, textured portraits that examine not only the tactility of images, but also their relationship to time and history. Your Gaze Makes Me, his solo show at Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery Berlin, offers a compelling exploration of how learnt habits of perception can limit our understanding of both the image and history, and how art can liberate new ways of seeing.
