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You founded Addis Contemporary Space seven years ago. What has surprised you most about the journey?
LIYA TADESSE: The hunger. I knew there were talented artists in Addis — that was never in question. What surprised me was how desperately people wanted a space that took them seriously. In the first month, we had artists coming in with portfolios they'd been carrying around for years, waiting for someone to look at them properly.
The other surprise was the audience. People said Ethiopians don't buy contemporary art, that there's no market. That's not true. There's a growing middle class in Addis that is educated, internationally connected, and genuinely interested in supporting Ethiopian artists. They just needed spaces that felt welcoming and professional.
What are the biggest structural challenges you face?
LIYA TADESSE: Funding is the obvious one. We don't have the philanthropic infrastructure that supports art spaces in Europe or North America. Government support is minimal and comes with strings attached. Corporate sponsorship is growing but still limited.
But the deeper challenge is critical infrastructure. We need more art writers, more critics, more people who can contextualize Ethiopian contemporary art for both local and international audiences. You can't build a sustainable art ecosystem on enthusiasm alone — you need critical discourse, documentation, and institutional memory. That's why what YESEFERSEW is doing with the journal is so important.