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# *Sai Mado (The Distant Gaze)*

National Museum of African Art

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                      - Print
                      -     Object Details- Aida Muluneh, born 1974, Ethiopia
- Series
- 4/7 + 2 AP
- Label Text
- Aida Muluneh explores the links and ruptures between generations, as well as the imperfections and disconnects that shape personal and national experience. She says, “As women, especially as African women, we forget—and the world forgets—our positioning in history and religion and culture.” This work is inspired by the Amharic saying, Temetaleh beye, Sai Mado, Sai Mado, ye liinete eyene mouma ende beredo (As I waited for you in a distant gaze, my eyes melted like ice awaiting your return). For Muluneh, the cloud sky symbolizes the uncertainty of relationships, while the image behind the broken glass looks to a past made present through memories.
- Description
- Full color photograph in which a woman is positioned centrally in profile, seated on a chair. The woman wears a vivid red pants suit, white shirt, and red tie. Her hands have been painted blue, and her face blue and red. Her plain wood chair rests on a black and white checkered floor, and the wall behind is blue with a pattern of white clouds. A framed black and white photo portrait of the woman hangs on the wall to her proper left.
- Provenance
- Acquired from the artist, 2016
- Exhibition History
- I Am: Contemporary African Women Artists, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., June 20, 2019 - April 3, 2022
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Credit Line
- Museum purchase
- 2016
- Object number
- 2016-16-2
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © 2016 Aida Muluneh
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Inkjet print on paper
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 81.9 × 81.9 cm (32 1/4 × 32 1/4 in.)
- Geography
- Ethiopia
- See more items in
- National Museum of African Art Collection
- National Museum of African Art
- Topic
- geometric motif
- female
- hand
- Record ID
- nmafa_2016-16-2
- Metadata Usage (text)
- Usage conditions apply
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys7575d7a1e-a3d8-4d42-a96d-76f588485c12
  CC0Creative Commons - No Rights Reserved iconUsage Conditions Apply>download icon>          There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .        International media Interoperability FrameworkIIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.View manifestView in Mirador ViewerExpand to view image×                             Footer logo      
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