Innovative Curatorial Projects – Paris / SingaporeTheo Eshetu
*1958, London, UK. Lives and works in London, UK.
Theo Eshetu has worked in media art since 1982, creating installations, video art works, and television documentaries. As a videomaker, he explores the expressive capabilities of the medium and the manipulation of the language of television. Exploring themes and imagery from anthropology, art history, scientific research, and religious iconography, he attempts to define how electronic media shape identity and perception. World cultures, particularly the relationship of African and European cultures, often inform Eshetu’s work.
Lightning strikes / Ethiopia / 2009 / 7’41 / 4:3
In 1935, the Italian army stole a historical monument from the city of Axum: a 24‐meter high granite obelisk dating from the 4th Century AD. In 1947, as part of a peace treaty, the Italian government agreed to return the obelisk. For decades, it reneged on its promise. Only in 2005, and after countless delays, was the monument returned. Theo Eshetu’s experimental documentary recounts this repatriation.