Merikokeb Berhanu

Merikokeb Berhanu’s paintings deftly balance abstraction and recognisable form, featuring dense backgrounds intertwined with recurring organic elements such as cellular structures, budding plant life, and stylised anthropomorphic shapes. These compositions explore the complexities and contradictions of contemporary life, drawing inspiration from both urban and rural landscapes while delving into themes of rapid urbanization and the tension between nature and technology. The artist’s recent works incorporate symbols like circuit boards and skeletal figures rendered in an increasingly vibrant palette. These developments emerged from a period of intense change for Berhanu following her immigration to Maryland in 2017, which spurred her to reflect on society's estrangement from the natural world. 

Merikokeb Berhanu (b. 1977, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) graduated in 2002 from Addis Ababa University, Alle School of Fine Arts and Design, with a focus on mural design and painting. Following her graduation, Berhanu and her contemporaries founded an artist-run studio and exhibition space called the Nubia Studio in 2004 with the goal of increasing their visibility and long-term career opportunities in a region where the arts have historically been under-supported. Berhanu's work has been showcased in solo and group exhibitions worldwide, including Making Their Mark: Art by Women in the Shah Garg Collection, curated by Cecilia Alemani, Shah Garg Foundation, New York and San Francisco (2023) and the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, The Milk of Dreams (2022); Her work was featured in the landmark travelling exhibition Ethiopia at the Crossroads at Walters Art Museum, Baltimore (2023), Peabody Essex Museum, Salem (2024), and Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo (2024).

Berhanu’s paintings are included in major institutional collections, including Tate, London, UK; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA; Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO; Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD; High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA; Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA; Inhotim Museum, Brumadinho, Brazil; and Fondation H, Antananarivo, Madagascar.