Tibebe’s style draws on the symbolic elements of African modernism, establishing Ethiopian culture as a central theme in both its form and content.
In particular, Harar, the city in eastern Ethiopia where the artist was born, serves as a metaphor for how the community’s daily activities are expressed through art. His use of partially and freely warm colors in the drawings, as well as the way the lines are organized in rings to give the impression of collecting and spreading, symbolizes twisting elements to the lines that provide a compelling melodic tone and wave.
This type of pictorial technique bears a resemblance to the cultural ornamentation called henna, which is seen among the women of the Horn of Africa. The symbolic images scattered on the painting are balanced and connected in the viewer’s mind. It creates unity within them as if they are moving together. In addition, the way that he depicted Harar’s medieval city architectural structures and the well-harmonized light and shadows of the pictorial structures has given a sense of perspective to the painting. Each figure we see in the painting is represented in decorative forms. It is a demonstration that Tibebe Terffa possesses profound knowledge about the cultural values of his land of origin. He has thus succeeded in portraying it in this manner, which symbolizes the fact that indigenous knowledge is accorded a vital place in postmodern artistic philosophy.
This way, he has portrayed faces in a distinctive way, giving the viewer the opportunity to imagine how they would look in real life. It confirms that art is a process in conceptualism. Music, in all its genres, has an inspiring force and power in its artistic creation, as if we were delighted with a work by the great master of abstractionism, Kandinsky. Tibebe has a scientific understanding and vision of music and sound. His musical taste is varied and exquisite, from Ethiopian Orthodox sacred music to Western classical symphonies, Arabic melancholic romantic music, and the magic beat of Afro-Caribbean music. In his work, it is so evident to see the fusion and harmony between painting and music, as if one did not exist without the other.
Color is a fundamental pictorial resource that establishes unity and harmony through the spiral lines that are a dominant formal element in most of his works. Therefore, the union between line and color creates a circular and spiral form that is, in part, a product of the Zen Buddhist philosophy, as he confessed. Furthermore, such figures are seen in some social groups in our country that use indigenous technology.
Finally, when appreciating Tibebe’s artistic output, we comprehend his deep immersion in a culture that has allowed him to forge his own unique artistic personality. He has put a lot of effort into developing his excellent artistic brain throughout his extensive career of research and artistic experimentation. He is a philosophical and intelligent man who lives in his own universe.
