Exhibition Ethiopian objects

The Institute of Eastern Christian Studies organized an exhibition in the Paraplufabriek, Van Oldenbarneveltstraat 63-A in Nijmegen from 24 July to 15 August.

You could visit the exhibition from Wednesday to Sunday, between 12:00 and 17:00.

We followed the RIVM guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19. When visiting, we kindly asked you to register your name and contact information, disinfect your hands, wear a facemask, and keep 1,5 meters distance.

About

A selection of interesting Ethiopian icons and objects was on view. This exhibition took you on a journey through the collection of the institute on the basis of various themes.

The icons bring Biblical stories to life and show religious life in Ethiopia, with rituals and processions on special holidays. Daily scenes are also portrayed, such as the manual labor of women or the hunting of wild animals by men. There are some serial works, but also real masterpieces.

We hope that this exhibition gave you a better idea of the rich Christian culture in the Horn of Africa, but of course we also wanted you to enjoy the aesthetics of the paintings.

The reason for this exhibition was the recent research by Loes van Beuningen and Ayla Kivits into the collection of some 500 Ethiopian objects that were donated to our institute in 2004 by the Nijmeegs Volkenkundig Museum. These objects come from the bequest of A.M. Heidt, who traveled through Ethiopia in the 1970s and was interested in the country's Orthodox Christian culture; the Tewahedo Church.

During the exhibition, the recently published booklet about the collection of Ethiopian icons written by Loes van Beuningen and Ayla Kivits was for sale.

Read the Trouw article about the exhibition here.