Fiker Solomon (b. 1995, Ethiopia) is an Ethiopian artist living and working in Addis Ababa. She graduated from Ale School of Fine Art and Design, Addis Ababa University with a major in Fashion Design in 2014. Since graduating from art school, she has developed a unique style of textile making, incorporating exclusively natural materials such as jute, cotton and sisal to compose intricate tapestries. Whilst stitching, she punches and knots the different materials together, continuously experimenting as she works, looking for new ways to manipulate and join the materials.
Solomon draws inspiration from the natural world, reflecting the simple pleasures of childhood, which for her consisted of days spent playing in the sun, mud, and her physical environment. She contrasts those nostalgic recollections with more adult themes of competition, disappointment, and sorrow. Finding solace in the parallels nature offers, she crafts works depicting complex networks of emotions, where feelings and needs are allowed to shift and evolve, much like the changing of the seasons and cycles of plant life.
Solomon recognizes our indispensable role and connection to the natural world. She works with 100% natural and biodegradable materials not just out of appreciation and respect for the environment, but also because of the versatility it offers. Jute sacks – both biodegradable and eco-friendly, absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen more rapidly than trees and, in Ethiopia, they are primarily used for coffee export. The jute employed in the artist’s work are those typically deemed useless after it having aged or being torn.
The process of working with textiles holds significant meaning for the artist, as it is a skill she first learned from her mother, who often crafted decorative embroideries for sofas, tables, and her children’s clothes. To Solomon, the act of stitching has become more than a mere skill. She uses the language of threading to communicate her own thoughts and needs.
Textiles hold a deep symbolic meaning for the artist, signifying the importance of interdependence and interconnectedness across cultures and between nature and humanity. They also echo shared moments of creation with her mother. She finds that textile also connects her with the passage of time, seamlessly bridging the present with the limitless possibilities of the future.
Solomon has been exhibited in the National Museum of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Her work is in the collections of the Africa Economic Commission (ECA), the German Embassy, Ethiopia and the U.S. Embassy, Ethiopia. Solomon lives and works in Addis Ababa.