Cultures at Risk Presenter Biographies

Meskerem Assegued

Cultures at Risk — the Success Stories

I was born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. When I finished high school, I went to the United States for higher education. I earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in cultural anthropology. I did my anthropological field research in Ethiopia. I focused specifically on an ancient pre-Christian indigenous religion called Erecha.

Art is one of the most important parts of my life. Therefore, I found ways to express my anthropological findings through art, particularly through contemporary art. I have been traveling with artists to document, both visually and literally, the mythologies, folklore, ritual celebrations and the landscapes of religious ritual sites. Recently, I curated an anthropological exhibition entitled Min Neber? which means “What was it?” in Amharic, the national language of Ethiopia. The exhibition was about an annual thunder ritual in south-central Ethiopia. It was presented to increase public awareness about a dying Ethiopian indigenous religion and its relationship to nature. In the last five years, I have published articles on art and culture in newspapers, catalogues, journals and one children’s book. I have also curated several anthropological exhibitions.

Currently, I live and work in Ethiopia with my husband and our two teenagers.