Since graduating from Alle School of Fine Art and Design in 2006, Tesfaye Urgessa has quickly become one of the most prominent contemporary artists from Ethiopia. He enrolled at the Staatlichen Akademie der Bildende Kunst in 2009 and has been based in Germany ever since. Having studied under modern master Tadesse Mesfin, at the Alle School of Fine Art and Design, Urgessa connected with Ethiopian iconography. This will be, in years to come, one of the binding elements of his artistic production. In his own words, this is like ‘always having an Ethiopian accent, no matter what language I’m speaking’. Later on, over the course of his travels in Europe, he encountered the heritage of German Neo-Expressionism and the London School, which he would also incorporate into his imagery. In social activism and storytelling Urgessa finds a catalyst for his artistic production. Among his most celebrated shows are Oltre/Beyond at Le Gallerie Degli Uffizi (2018) and Von denen die auszogen (Of those who moved out??) at State Galerie Villa Streccius, Landau (2019).