The Paintings in St. George Church in Addis Ababa as a Method of Conveying Information about History and Power in 20th - century Ethiopia
The Paintings in St. George Church in Addis Ababa as a Method of Conveying Information about History and Power in 20th - century Ethiopia
Author(s): Hanna Rubinkowska-AniołSubject(s): Visual Arts, Ethnohistory, Recent History (1900 till today)
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: Ethiopia; visual representation; St. George Church; Haile Sellasie I; Italo-Ethiopian War
Summary/Abstract: In one of the most important churches in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), there is a panel containing several paintings. They are exact copies of photographs showing Emperor Haile Sellasie I during the war against Italy (1935-1941). The paint-ings were copied from frequently published, and thus well-known, photographs, which served imperial propaganda to show the Emperor’s role in fighting for Ethiopia’s independ-ence. Using the paintings as source material, it is the aim of this article to discuss specific propagandistic methods applied in Ethiopia under Haile Sellasie to transmit a message about power and history, and to present the intended image of the Emperor to his subjects.
Journal: Studies in African Languages and Cultures
- Issue Year: 2015
- Issue No: 49
- Page Range: 115-141
- Page Count: 27
- Language: English
