Merikokeb Berhanu Untitled XXVIII, 2017

Untitled XXVIII is an acrylic painting on canvas, made by Merikokeb Berhanu while she was still living and working in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia—a prolific period for the artist.

The central patterned mass represents a pulsing entanglement of cells held together in an amorphous womb-like enclosure. The red circle at the very middle can be likened to the beating heart of the canvas or to the spinning star at the core of an outwardly-bursting planetary nebula. The red bulbs that coil around the canvas from their black stems are undeniably plant-like, but are also reminiscent of a mammalian womb. In the lower third of the canvas, an abstracted blue eye gazes out at the viewer from within an intricately patterned surging wave form.

The work speaks beautifully to Merikokeb's fascination with the universality of organic forms on every level from the micro to the macroscopic while also speaking to the connection between earthly life forms and the cosmos. While certain forms—such as the red bulbs or the eye in this work—are recurring symbols throughout her practice, Merikokeb feels strongly that her paintings should be left open to the interpretation of the viewer, and felt deeply on a spiritual and emotional level that transcends verbal explanation.