HANI MIKIYAS

HANI MIKIYAS (Ethiopia) b.1996

Hani Mikiyas is an exceptionally talented and self-taught artist whose work explores the emotional inner worlds of women. Through her early background in social work she learned to see what words often leave unsaid, in quiet gestures and postures that reveal vulnerability and strength.

She uses bold colour, stylised form, and textured surfaces to express the emotion that vibrates through her work. Her figures bend, curl, and gaze outward, capturing moments of stillness, reflection and self-dialogue. Each painting centres the body as an emotional archive, inviting viewers into the space between what women show and what they hold.

Mikiyas’s layered portraits both honour complexity and encourage empathy. Through her painting she creates a striking portrayal of feeling that challenges expectation, and is a powerful celebration of the resilience and fragility that co-exists through everyday life.

Mikiyas’s work has been exhibited in solo and group shows in London, New York, Addis Ababa and Brussels. She lives and works in Addis Ababa.