Desta’s childhood hobby of watching the moon at night with her
father, who was a gardener and a music lover, made her experience the joy of
taking care of the flowers.
She was born in 1953 in
Tigray, northern Ethiopia, and studied under the mentorship of the pioneering
and well-known Addis Ababa Art School teachers. She was raised, in particular,
under the tutelage of the renowned modern Ethiopian painter and poet Gebre
Kristos, who had a significant influence on her paintings, making her one of
the few Ethiopian pioneer female artists who dedicated her entire life to art.
More importantly, her relationship with the internationally renowned Ethiopian
modern artist Gebre Kristos was not only as a student and teacher, but also as
a close friend, professional, and father.
Desta speaks highly of Gebre Kristos, who gave
her his personal and professional tools when he left the country he loved and
immigrated to a foreign country, and she still especially treasures tools. From
this, it is not difficult to understand that all is kept in her sharp memory,
especially in her happiest eyes.
With the help
of her former French high school teacher, her painting was sent to compete in
the Shankar International Children’s Art Competition organized by the Indian
Foundation in 1964. Along with her, a fellow Ethiopian participant, painter,
and graphic artist Tulu Guya, was named the winner. Right after she joined the
9th grade, Princess Hirut Desta discovered Desta’s inborn talent for drawing.
This paved the way for Desta to study at the Addis Ababa Fine Art School, which
was established in 1957 by the well-known modern painter and art educator
Alefelege Selam.
The Creative
Art Center, which was established in 1963 at the former Haile Selassie I
University and is now part of the current Addis Ababa University, was an active
and vibrant artistic platform. Different artistic events, such as theater,
poetry, music, etc., were performed and attended by prominent Ethiopian modern
creative artists such as Gebre Kristos, Behailu Girma, Tsagaye Gebremedhin, and
others with great artistic talent and caliber. Desta made attending these types
of events her much-loved routine every Saturday. Working tirelessly in the
studios became Desta’s habit. This hard work paid off when the university gave
her the privilege to participate in the first young painters’ group exhibition
that was held at the Creative Center. The event received wide media coverage at
the time.
She was the
only woman among the women who studied with her to successfully complete her
studies and receive a diploma from the Addis Ababa School of Fine Arts in 1969.
After getting a grant to study abroad, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Fine
Arts from California Lutheran University in 1973. She is diligent in her career
and is known for her work in the field of public relations, serving as the head
of the Department of the Ethiopian Tourism Trading Enterprise. In addition to
leaving her mark on the scene of Ethiopian painting, Desta has become a symbol
of strength for female painters who have followed in her footsteps.
Desta, in her long artistic practice and
experience since 1970, has participated in different private and group
exhibitions in Ethiopia and abroad, and her well-experienced visual art has
received national and international recognition. Recently, she was bestowed the
title of Laureate Artist by the current prime minister of Ethiopia. In a
nutshell, Desta is widely regarded as Ethiopia’s most prominent modern and
contemporary female artist.
