Kingdoms of Ethiopia II

Motion portraits from the Yatreda series Kingdoms of Ethiopia: የኢትዮጵያ መንግሥታት, which merges historical Ethiopian heroes and heroines with the blockchain.

King Lalibela
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

King Lalibela with crown, monarch of the Zagwe dynasty from 1181 to 1221.

Gudit
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Gudit [Yodit], the rebel leader who led a revolt and burned the Kingdom of Aksum.

Gudit — Portrait
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Gudit [Yodit], the rebel leader who led a revolt and burned the Kingdom of Aksum.

Seba Segel — Astronomer King
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Seba Segel, the traveling astronomer king, the “wise man from the east.”

Gift of Frankincense
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Seba Segel, the traveling astronomer king, bearing a gift of frankincense.

Seba Segel — The New Star
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Seba Segel, the traveling astronomer king, searching the night sky for the new star.

Royal Guard — Lion of Judah
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Royal guard of the Solomonic dynasty wearing an emblem of the Lion of Judah.

Royal Guard
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Royal guard of the Solomonic dynasty wearing an emblem of the Lion of Judah.

Itegue Taitu — Portrait
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Portrait of Itegue Taitu Betul, Empress of Ethiopia who ruled from 1889 until 1913.

Itegue Taitu
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

As the wife of Menelik II, Itegue Taitu founded the capital city of Addis Ababa and modernized the country.

Itegue Taitu — New Flower
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

Itegue Taitu Betul, founder of Addis Ababa (“New Flower”) in 1886.

King Lalibela — Rock-Hewn
Edition of 1 · Single-channel video, 2021
Provenance 0x814a…6ee7

King Lalibela with the rock-hewn city he commissioned and constructed during the Zagwe dynasty.

Creating Kingdoms of Ethiopia II
Artwork

For the second installment of Kingdoms of Ethiopia, Yatreda collaborated with local artisans to create a sculpted mud house. The techniques using hay and clay are being replaced throughout Ethiopia, but were sought out to create the set for this project.