Name/Title
Tesfa Ethiopian Cuisine, Chicago (Uptown)Entry/Object ID
2025.12.03Description
Photograph of the interior of restaurant Tesfa Ethiopian Cuisine in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood. The scene is of a table in the corner of the restaurant, set with tea and two ornately decorated bowls. The wall is painted red and green and a painting is hung on the wall of women washing.Context
Meticulously composed, Castillo’s photographs document dozens of businesses—along with their owners and employees—bringing renewed attention to the ongoing debates surrounding immigration in the United States. Rather than addressing the issue confrontationally, which he believes can cause people to disengage, Castillo juxtaposes the vibrant aesthetics of these shops with the subtlety of his message. “I’m hoping to make a project that’s very honorific for the people who start these businesses and operate them and run them,” he has said. “If people see them, it might even remind them of their own parents’ small business” (Borderless Magazine, 2024). By presenting the topic of immigration in a non-combative way, Castillo hopes the project will resonate across political lines and reach the widest possible audience.Acquisition
Accession
2025.12Source or Donor
Castillo, JonathanAcquisition Method
PurchaseCredit Line
Courtesy of the artistMade/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Castillo, JonathanRole
PhotographerDate made
2022Notes
Printed in 2025Edition
Edition Size
10Edition Number
2Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
SignatureLocation
ReverseTranscription
2/10 / Jonathan Michael Castillo / 2025/2022Language
EnglishMaterial/Technique
PencilLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Secondary Object Term
Print, PhotographicNomenclature Primary Object Term
PhotographNomenclature Sub-Class
Graphic DocumentsNomenclature Class
Documentary ObjectsNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsGetty AAT
Concept
photographs, visual works (works), portraitsHierarchy Name
Visual Works (hierarchy name), Visual and Verbal Communication (hierarchy name)Facet
Objects FacetLOC Thesaurus for Graphic Materials
Immigrants, Business enterprises, Restaurants, Tea