MICKAEL BETHE-SELASSIE (ETHIOPIAN / FRENCH 1951-2020)
Untitled sculpture
signed and dated MICKAEL BETHE-SELASSIE 1993 (on the reverse)
papier maché
58 x 25 x 12 cm (22 3/4 x 9 3/4 x 4 3/4 in) dimensions variable

Mickaël Bethe-Selassié was a painter and sculptor whose colourful portraits of whimsical statue-like sculptures in papier mâché brought him international renown.

Living most of his adult life in Paris, the artist exhibited his works in a number of prestigious museums as well as in group and solo shows in Paris, Amsterdam, Anvers, Barcelona, Berlin, Cologne, Geneva, London, Rio de Janeiro, Washington DC. He appeared on the covers of several fine art magazines and was invited to produce art for high-profile cover art for Peter Gabriel music. The Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington D.C. has acquired one of his sculptures for its permanent collection.