Yatreda is a family art collective from Ethiopia, founded and led by creative director Kiya Tadele, that stages costumed portraits of historical and mythological Ethiopian figures in the family's own front yard. Combining photography, video and blockchain technology, the collective works to preserve and animate Ethiopian cultural memory.
Tadele grew up in the Ethiopian countryside before moving to Addis Ababa, where she modeled for seven years and then moved behind the camera, working in lighting and editing for photographers and documentarians across the country. Yatreda was the first project on which she took full creative leadership. The collective's name comes from an Amharic childhood nickname tied to a fortune-teller's prediction about Tadele, and came to also describe the curious neighbors and construction workers who would watch historical figures in costume being shot in the family's yard.
