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“Abyssinia”

Posted on December 6, 2015December 6, 2015 by Seb Toussaint

“I choose to share the word “Abyssinia”. It’s the former name of my country, at the time when Ethiopia and Eritrea were together”. – Eyoel – Lideta, Addis Ababa

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Tagged Addis Ababa, africa, amharic, art, colours, design, ethiopia, graffiti, Lideta, mural, outsiders krew, paint, painting, seb toussaint, share the word, share the word project, slum, spag

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These are the 2 words I painted for the "Forum Mondial Normandie pour la Paix", an international world peace forum which took place a few weeks ago in Caen. I painted these on the main marquee where I was invited to talk about my experience with Congolese refugees, Colombian IDPs and the power of art. Photo by Xavier Boscher . #peace #liberte #freedom #Normandy #Normandie #Caen #streetart #artwork #art #type #arteurbano #letters #patterns #design

I painted this mural for @murmursfestival in Decazeville, France. On the first day of the festival, I met a group of refugees who'd arrived in Decazeville during the last 2 years. Ajoua, a climate refugee from Mali chose the word "Paix" (peace in French). Anjoua 20 years old, reached France a few months ago and doesn't yet know if he'll be able to stay. Climate change is drying up his homeland, forcing the Fula herders to bring their cattle further and further across the Sahel region in order to find vegetation. Clashes errupted when the Fula started brining their animals to Dogon territory. The Dogon are mostly farmers and had to defend their crops for their own survival. The clashes have killed hunderds of people and have forced many more to flee. Ajoua told me that this isn't really an ethnic problem, it's a climate change problem. I've been hearing these stories across West and East Africa for years. Climate refugees aren't just something that will happen in the future. It's happening right now. . Photos by @alex_gallosi #streetart #ShareTheWordProject #Mural #urbanart #decazeville #aveyron #occitanie #art #arte #sebtoussaint #climatechange #climaterefugee #climaterefugees #refugee #withrefugees #patterns #painting

Check out these pictures by @nico.giquel of me at @murmursfestival ! I want to thank the refugees who chose the word I painted and who I laughed with everyday when they came to support me! I want to thank the organisers for the amazing time spent in Decazeville. It was a week full of work, laughs, warm sweat in my eyes, watching the African Nation's Cup with refugees on terrible streaming websites, large meals, sticky banana skinny caps, ridiculous tan lines, and failed attempts to cross the road on my hands, and it all happened thanks to @amelie_amelove , @jodibona , Nico the warrior, Marine, Christophe, @laety_peralta and all the people who helped out! Thank you to the photographers : @alex_gallosi @sebastien_murat_photographe @vinsfilmmaker and the brilliant @nico.giquel and Saskia. It was great to meet and get to know some of the best artists in France : @viniegraffiti @astro_odv_cbs @lady_m_art @mtograff @hopare1 @doudoustyle @jokolor @a_r_d_i_f , the streetart surgeons @monkeybirdcrew @stoulpeintresse @romainfroquet . I'm very honoured to have been part of that bunch! Thank you to the inhabitants of Decazeville who were so generous and enthusiastic! . #streetart #decazeville #aveyron #occitanie #urbanart #arteurbano #portrait #graffiti #murmursfestival

Refugees aren't just numbers thrown into political debates, they are real people. I'm lucky to have met and worked with many of them in Kenya, France, Iraq, Palestine and Uganda and I'm thankful for what they have taught me about the world, their cultures, and human resilience. I think about them all the time and mostly these thoughts make me smile because of the great moments we shared. But sometimes thinking about them fucking hurts. For real. And whenever I hear about new waves of people fleeing a country, I'm under the impression that I know these people. I can see their faces and hear their stories of being forced to leave home because a bunch of powerful people fucked up. I sit there at night, searching about South Sudan, Congo or Venezuela, tears blurring my vision because it's not just a piece of information that will disappear as soon as the next celebrity dies or has a baby, it's not just a number, these are real people. On the bright side, I believe there's always something we can do, whether it be by helping people who have fled, or creating a future where people won't have to flee. #WorldRefugeeDay #Refugees #withRefugees #UNRWA #Unhcr

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