Aberash | አበራሽ | You Give Light II

Artist Tsedaye Makonnen (Ethiopian-American, born 1984)

CultureEthiopian-American

Date2023

MediumMirrored stainless steel, plexiglass, LED tubes, and assembly bolts and nuts

DimensionsOverall: 120 × 12 × 12 inches (304.8 × 30.48 × 30.48 cm)

Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust through the George H. and Elizabeth O. Davis Fund

Object number2026.11.1.1-25

On View

Not on view

Terms

DescriptionThis light sculpture, shaped as a tall rectangular prism, is engraved with Coptic Ethiopian crosses. There are ten unique and ornate crosses arranged at even intervals on the four visible faces of the sculpture. LED tubes hidden within the structure illuminate the piece from the inside out. A glowing light emanates from the Coptic cut-outs.Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Africa and Byzantium, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, November 19, 2023-March 3, 2024.

Provenance

Purchased from the artist by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2026.

Published References

Yaelle Biro and Constantin Petridis, Les Arts Africains: Histoire et Dynamique (Paris: Citadelles & Mazenod, 2025), 504-505, (repro.).

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