Theo Eshetu

Tiwani Contemporary is pleased to present The Slave Ship, a video installation by Theo Eshetu, who is known for his pioneering work in film and video. This is the first time that The Slave Ship has been shown in the UK, after recent exhibitions at The Studio Museum in Harlem and Deichtorhallen, Hamburg (2016). Eshetu is currently participating in Documenta 14 in Kassel and Athens.

Eshetu has created a pensive oceanic epic evoking the history and legacy of slavery and examining its currency regarding present-day trade and migration. Shot in Hamburg, where the Swedish Africa Company traded in slaves, gold, ivory and sugar from São Tomé, The Slave Ship borrows from the legends of the Flying Dutchman and Drexciya to suggest that the ghosts of enslaved people still haunt the waters of European ports.

Theo Eshetu (b. 1958), London) grew up in Addis Ababa, Dakar and London before establishing himself in Rome. He currently lives and works in Berlin. Recent solo shows include: American Academy in Rome (2015); DAADGalerie, Berlin (2014); Museum of African Art, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC (2010); Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels (2010); Unesco Headquarters, Paris (2009); and Baltimore Museum of Art (2006). Recent group exhibitions include: The Studio Museum in Harlem (2016); Deichtorhallen, Hamburg (2016); Deutsche Bank Kunsthalle, Berlin (2015); Göteborg Biennial (2015); Kochi Biennale (2014); 54th Venice Biennale (2011); Sharjah Biennial (2011); and ICP, New York (2006). Eshetu is currently exhibiting new work in Kassel and Athens as part of Documenta 14.