Eritrea
After an extensive search I still have not been able to find a specific person to represent Eritrea, so I have painted a placeholder image of a metalworker from Asmara who is part of a group with an interesting story
About Eritrea
Eritrea is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the south, Sudan to the west, and Djibouti to the southeast. The northeastern and eastern parts of Eritrea have an extensive coastline along the Red Sea.
The main environmental issues facing Eritrea include continued deforestation, desertification, soil erosion, and overgrazing, along with significant land loss as a result of the presence of hundreds of thousands of unexploded land mines. Additionally, there is heavy mining within the country for gold, copper, and zinc.
About The Macaroni Welder
After many months of research and searching I had still not found a subject to paint for Eritrea
During my reading, I came across a fascinating article from 2015 in The Guardian by the multitalented artist and photographer Ayla Hibri
Ayla had visited the Madebar Market in Asmara and had discovered a large section of the market where metalworkers were mending or making a wide range of products using metal that was available to them. This recycling and upcycling was embedded as normal and it was another aspect of resourcefulness and recycling that really caught her eye
Ayla realised that within the welders, shields and visors for their face and neck were often made from recycled materials such as cut down oil bottles or cardboard boxes. The bespoke shields gave each welder their own personalised look
In addition to the art deco architecture the Italians left behind in Asmara another legacy from that era is that italian food is still popular with a number of Pizza and Pasta restaurants within the city. Of all the images in Ayla's series, I chose the subject who had a shield made from a box that had previously conatined macaroni which would reference some of Eritrea's present and its past.
Watch the portrait's story below
This video shows the painting process, and tells some of The Macaroni Welder's story.
