ART AFRICA features a new interview with Tegene Kunbi, exploring his artistic research and the abstract language at the heart of Shapes of Silence, presented at the Ethiopian Pavilion on the occasion of the 61st Venice Biennale.
Through a dialogue intertwining personal memory, cultural traditions, and artistic freedom, the artist reflects on the meaning of abstraction and the role of colour as an autonomous form of expression.
“Colour is also silence,” states Kunbi in the interview. This reflection captures the essence of the exhibition: silence is not an absence of expression, but rather a space in which colours, materials, and forms interact, giving rise to new possibilities of interpretation.
In his monumental compositions, textiles from different African traditions intertwine with personal memories and cultural references, transforming into a visual language that transcends geographical and identity boundaries. With Shapes of Silence, Kunbi invites viewers to reconsider African abstraction beyond conventional categories, asserting the freedom of art to express itself without being confined to predetermined meanings.
Read the full interview on ART AFRICA here.
