Ethiopia: Light of Africa

 

BY LEULSEGED WORKU

The spirit of Ethiopia is engraved in the heart of every Ethiopian. Depending on the type of profession they engaged in, almost all Ethiopians have their own way of expressing their love to their motherland- Ethiopia.  

This strong Ethiopian sentiment is in the heart of every Ethiopian that lives all over the world and in every profession. Lately, this writer had a chance to visit Alem Art School where young and upbringing painters are engaged in art to express Ethiopia in different ways.

Zacharias Dagnachew, is one of the amateur painters whom The Ethiopian Herald met at the art school. Zekarias Dagnachew, is a young and talented painter with deep thought. As a young and passionate painter, he has a distinct way of representing Ethiopia through art. For him, Ethiopia is apple of an eye for Africans. That is why he replaced the map of Ethiopia with an eye at the Horn.

For him, Ethiopia is truly an eye of Africa that attentively watches not only its people, but also the wellness of the rest of Africa. That is why it is always willing and ready to send peacekeeping forces and work for continental peace.

An eye is the light of the whole body. It is an organ that guides the whole body.  Ethiopia is the eye of Africa. When the rest of the continent was under the darkness, Ethiopia had been serving as the light for other African countries. It was an inspiration for African nationalist leaders to break the yoke of colonialism. This spirit of preserving one`s sovereignty is still intact in this generation.

There might be political as well as economic upheavals but Ethiopia has still remained an eye of Africa. The existence of the African Union and the recent testimony of Political leaders who spoke at the inauguration ceremony of Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed is a good example of this.

The other young artist whom the Ethiopian Herald spoke about was, Semere Ta`em. Semere was a mechanical engineer by profession. However, the call from art has let him to abandon his career and he is now pursuing his call.  Semere has represented Ethiopia through a hard working farmer`s hand holding Coffee beans.

For Semere, Ethiopia is a land of coffee. However, it did not properly use its share from the sector. The coffee bean with the hard working hand represents commitment and hope, says Semere.

According to him, Ethiopia is a land of strong people who tilt the land to feed millions. Coffee is one of the plants planted by committed hands of Ethiopia and source of foreign currency. This is a true indication of industriousness.

Coffee also represents Ethiopia`s originality of mankind. Ethiopia is a land of diverse culture with tolerance. It is a land that has offered a lot of things to the ancient world. This is the true identity of Ethiopians.  These strong and committed hands are not only busy planting coffee. They are also committed to protect the land from any forms of aggression or expansion.

Motherhood is the other painting where the young painter Mikiyas Mulugeta, represented Ethiopia.  Motherhood is a spiritual and bodily connection between a mother and her children.

Motherhood is natural and there is strong attachment between the two. Whenever we talk about this connection we should also think of the strong attachment of people with the soil they live in.

The love and commitment of a mother to her children is strong. There is nothing that a mother would not sacrifice to protect her children. The same is to those people living in that particular nation.