“Armed with the knowledge of our past, we can with confidence charter a course for our future. Culture is an indispensable weapon in the freedom struggle. We must take hold of it and forge the future with the past.” - Malcolm X

About the artist ::

Lyonna Lyu is a self-taught digital iconographer and painter based in Sacramento, California blending elements of traditional Eritrean and Ethiopic Orthodox (Tewahedo) art with a distinctive iconographic style, creating visual narratives that reflect the contemporary world through an African-diasporic lens. As the first of their family born in America, Lyu believes art allows us to learn about our past, reconnect with old traditions, and it permits us to explore perspectives which fray from what we are accustomed to. While the influences of growing up in a traditional Eritrean household remain at the core, Lyu incorporates their personal views that are sometimes considered subversive or antithetical from the voices at home.

Many of their artworks carry strong political resonances while simultaneously leaning into a whimsical space with dreamlike cloud imagery conveying transcendence (and perhaps delusion). In recent projects, these ethereal clouds have moved from the background of their icons into the foreground encompassing large parts of later compositions compared to earlier works. These spiral clouds entrance the viewer in allowing for another moment to view the piece in entirety.

Beyond aesthetics, Lyu’s work operates as a form of cultural anthropology acting to preserve, reinterpret, and extend visual elements of the Tewahedo Church and the diaspora. Common figures within their artworks like angels are undeniably Black as their practice becomes both an act of contemporary storytelling and cultural preservation, situating ancient forms within present-day dialogues of identity, resistance, and imagination.

In 2020, Lyu pivoted from solely selling prints to minting their digital icons as non-fungible tokens on the blockchain. Consequently, Lyu pioneered new ways of preserving their voice and archiving culture on experimental technology, breaking ground in a space where traditional Tewahedo iconography and cutting-edge digital media had not intersected before.

Lyu’s adaptation of blockchain technology stems from an inherent drive for survival, reflecting on the documentation, art, and legacies that persist even after eras of destruction such as war and conflict. As an early adopter, their artworks have been acquired by prominent digital art institutions and vaults cementing their role as both a cultural innovator and a preserver of diasporic narratives in the emerging digital art frontier.

Since entering the metaverse, Lyonna has sold over 50 NFTs, majority are 1 of 1s, with pieces held in esteemed custodial vaults such as the Museum of Crypto Art, the Museum of NFT Art, ONE / OFF, the $WHALE Art Vault.

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Moments ::