Ephrem Solomon: Untitled Life

About

Tiwani Contemporary presents Untitled Life, a selection of socio-political works using a combination of woodcut and missed media by Ethiopian artist Ephrem Solomon. The exhibition is Solomon's debut with Tiwani Contemporary and his first in London. Untitled Life is an ambitious body of work that speaks not only to contemporary Ethiopia but also globally. Views of the city, its histories and the people that inhabit these spaces inform his practice. Solomon's interest in a fictional world that exists beyond the present, and no one that is free from the limitations on anecdotal recordings are often represented through ‘untitled' characters to maintain the anonymity of the subjects and to allow viewers to identify themselves within the work. The facial expressions of these characters are not directed at anyone in particular and suggest unshared, solitary emotions. Symbols such as chairs, slippers and archival materials are used in a repetitive manner to address social and political tensions between governments and societies affected by regional instabilities. The ambiguity of the location and poses are carefully chosen by the artist to emulate a time of social upheaval and displacement. Isolation is often reflected in monochromatic tone, the absence of a body in chairs, or feet in slippers; bursts of colour are used to place emphasis on transition. Untitled Life presents observations in symbolic pieces that provide personal and political narratives beyond his locale.