Tigist Yoseph Ron. January 9 – February 22, 2025. FRIDMAN GALLERY, New York – United States

Ethiopian-Israeli artist Tigist Yoseph Ron‘s debut solo exhibition in the United States. The exhibition includes new paintings alongside Ron’s signature charcoal-and-eraser drawings. While her work often explores themes of motherhood and femininity, YAYA shifts focus, capturing the complex emotional dissonance between the artist and her late father. Through layering and erasure, Ron reclaims her memory and childlike perspective, observing her father from a distance and unraveling their estranged connection.

“I deeply appreciate my family’s powerful legacy – says Tigist Yoseph Ron -, but I often wish for a lighter burden, a chance to forge my own path. Though my father’s strength and my mother’s spiritual lineage provide confidence, I sometimes feel undeserving, and the weight can be debilitating. I wrestle with balancing my Ethiopian and Jewish heritage, my desire for individuality, and my discomfort when straying too far from my roots. Moving to Israel at seven made me question the coexistence of Ethiopian and Israeli cultures. Now, I try to reconcile these influences with my fascination for Black American culture. As I raise my children, I wonder if they need deeper cultural grounding to thrive. Ultimately, a transcendent force moves my hand to the canvas, beyond any singular identity”.

Tigist mainly works with natural charcoal on paper. She loves the simplicity and softness that charcoal can create. Working in black and white helps her focus on the story, emotions, and sense of light. The main themes in Her work are femininity and motherhood. The starting point for her works generally is a person she is close to, but as the process progresses, the specific identity of the person is slightly obscured in order to emphasize the movement and rhythm that are created. Sometimes the way the light falls on a figure or strong emotions leads her to place more emphasis on the relations between the shapes and forms in the drawing.