Rakeb Sile & Mesai Haileleul. Courtesy of Bandele Zuberi and Addis Fine Art
[...] The fates and fortunes of African artists have, until recently, been largely shaped by outsider interests. But now, as the market for these artists grows apace, African galleries are taking a firmer hand in their fortunes by expanding to the West.
Rakeb Sile and Mesai Haileleul, the co-founders of Addis Fine Art, started out as art consultants in London while simultaneously running a gallery in Addis Ababa, which they founded in 2016. Last year, Addis Fine Art joined Cromwell Place, the gallery hub in South Kensington. "We need to make sure this region is included in the conversations and narrative around contemporary and Modern art; there's a huge gap," Sile says. [...]