Website: https://www.artistusie.com
I'm Usie Mulat, an Ethiopian artist based in Manchester, United Kingdom. With an eclectic body of work spanning decades, I'm a versatile painter, my work is inspired by commonplace objects and abstract concepts. The one thing all my pieces have in common is a tale of freedom and social change, a story within a frame. "Born in Ethiopia to a middle-class family, Usie went through many career changes, interacting with a wide variety of people to get his current perspective. Usie knew painting was his calling when he saw an artist painting on the fence of the walls encompassing his church. It was a moment as magical as Adam touching the hand of God in Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam. From that moment on the young budding artist would try to draw on any paper he could find with a pen or pencil. His father is the strongest influence on his art. Although Mr Mulat never took his work public, he has private books of paintings of his dreams. When Usie spread his wings and left Ethiopia to make his way in the world, Mr Mulat gifted him two of these books as mementoes. Usie started his professional life at a young age and went through many stages in his art career. He worked on carpentry with Elias, another inspiring figure in his life. Then he went on to work with up-and-coming artists arranging commercially successful exhibits and launches. Whether he was crafting wooden furniture with his mentor or scoping out budding talents and helping them shine he always gravitated to art. He has done six group exhibitions. Now he is in the process of preparing his first-ever solo show. The road was long and tiring. It is time for Usie to bring his work to the world stage."