— Born and raised into an Ethiopian and Malian household in Silver Spring, Maryland, Mahlet Traore’s story telling is rooted in their family’s ancestry, nomadic journey, and their navigation as a first generation American. Mahlet is a self-taught anti-disciplinary artist, culture conservator, and community builder. Their practice of experimentation and play pushes boundaries and bridges the gap between reality and dreams, 2D vs 3D vs 4D, ultimately creating a surrealist dimension of its own.

Mahlet is shy to no genre or medium, as their work limitlessly ranges and blends painting, sculpture, film, fashion, performance and soundscapes. By opening portals to heightened realms of consciousness within their work, that energy becomes a regenerative tool for radical healing, homecoming, and transcendence where the veil ceases to exist between the spirit and physical sphere. Through seamlessly fusing Ethiopian culture, spirituality, healing magic rituals, Malian customs and West African mythology with diasporic experiences, Mahlet creates timeless installations that take you on a ride through the past, present, and future all at once.

Investigating dialogues that weave memory, nostalgia, hair, body art, language, autonomy, Blackness, Queerness, and Transness, the tales Mahlet tells become the foundation for rejuvenation, transformation, and total liberation which conjure deep wisdom and guidance from ancestral spirits. Their work transforms into an intergenerational metaphysical oasis for individual and collective rest, anger, grief, and celebration that continues to exist outside the realm of their practice and encourages others to nurture the creativity of their inner child. 

Playlists curated to their practice: