In the late 1950s, Tesfaw moved to Addis Ababa to pursue painting as a career, ultimately leaving the priesthood.
There he had the help of his godfather Yohannes Tessema, a successful commercial artist.
He sold paintings through his godfather, and later through several souvenir shops in Addis Ababa.
His work has been featured in a number of showings of Ethiopian art overseas, and the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History organized a touring exhibition of his work in 2004, which continued touring until at least November 2007.
In 2004 he also appeared on the popular Ethiopian Television program "Meto Haya".