Elias Sime (1968, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) is a world-renowned Ethiopian visual artist and sculptor who works with industrial materials and electronic detritus, or "e-waste") such as microchips, power cords, computers, and other discarded components and residues from tech manufactures.
[1][2][3] Elias Sime graduated from the Addis Ababa University Alle School of Fine Arts and Design in 1990.
[4] He co-founded the Zoma Contemporary Art Center, with his creative partner, curator, and anthropologist Meskerem Assegued, an exhibition venue and artist-in-residence space in Addis Ababa.
The numerous keyboards, microchips, copper electrical wires, batteries, pieces of screens and older-generation computers found in Sime's large-scale wall installations originates from the Mercato market.
[12][13][14] In 2024, the solo show Elias Sime: Dichotomy ፊት አና ጀርባ as part of the events surrounding the 60th Venice Biennale, Italy, comments on the human use of technological resources, the material waste by Western culture, and the constant overlooked conditions in which these materials are discarded.