Art Talk: The Black and Blue Works of Tariku Shiferaw

Tariku Shiferaw is an Ethiopian born artist who explores the nature of societal structures through painting and mark-making. He utilizes Hip-Hop, R&B, Jazz, Blues, and Reggae song titles as a kind of point of reference to real life stories, and emphasizing the everyday struggle of the Black artist, and their since of place. Shiferaw uses pattern to not just develop a specific aesthetic, but to represent Black bodies and how they inhabit a distinct space. Shiferaw was raised in Los Angeles, and has earned a BFA from the University of Southern California, and a MFA from Parsons School of Design.