In Europe, the image of Ethiopia is still highly influenced by geographical maps, photos, texts and drawings by European travelers who visited the country in the 19th century. Those documents also remain important for the work of Ethiopian historians, as other historical accounts of that time are very limited. However, it is vital to recognize that they are all made from an European perspective.
In CHOA. A GEOGRAPHICAL PASSION, the Goethe-Institut and Alliance Ethio-Française dedicate themselves to the shared European-Ethiopian legacy: A group, consisting of eight young Ethiopian artists, photographers, historicists, geologists and anthropologists attends an introductory seminar on the topic, concentrates on their own research using Ethiopian archives and finally, in the beginning of October, begins to travel the Choa region by taking former routes of European travelers. They document their own experiences in various ways and present the results next to the historical files in an exhibition on the 25th of October. The project is curated by Hugues Fontaine (France) und Mifta Zeleke (Ethiopia).
Back
