In Pics | Artists flee Sudan as army, paramilitary clash despite truce

The ongoing Sudan conflict has not just caused widespread damage but has also displaced thousands. Many artists of worn-torn Sudan have had to leave their years of work behind and flee Sudan. 

Let’s take a look at the journey of these incredibly strong individuals, who fled their nation in hopes of a better tomorrow. 
 

Yasmeen Abdullah is one such painter who had to leave her years of work behind and flee the nation. Speaking to Reuters, she said, "I had to abandon many things and leave without knowing when I'd return, or if the things I did leave would be there when I get back. About 20 pieces of artwork, years of artistic practice, rough sketches, drawings – literally everything."  

Abdullah, who is nine months' pregnant, faced several challenges due to power cuts and broken healthcare infrastructure. Hence, the only alternative for her was to flee the nation. "The health centre near my house was bombed the same day I was scheduled for a routine checkup. That's when my husband and I realised it wasn't safe to stay," she told Reuters. Presently, she and her husband are taking shelter in Shendi, a city 150km north of Kartoum. 

Under the rule of Omar al-Bashir, cultural and social activities were strictly controlled. During an interview, Rahiem Shadad, co-founder of  Downtown Gallery in Khartoum, told Reuters, "We've always been repressed, especially during Bashir's time. Artists were forced to be in these bubbles, and they had their own silent cries." 

Shadad's gallery has raised just over $8,500 of a $30,000 target to support artists financially during the war. One of the 70 people the gallery is helping is Muhammed Yusuf. At a time when all other artists have left, Yusuf refuses to leave his home in Omdurman. Yusuf told Reuters, "I have my own role as an innovator, as well as my own message to society as a community leader, and this is the place from which I'd like to create."  
 

Khalid Abdelrahman, a renowned artist stayed in Sudan during the initial few days of the war. Later, he moved to Wadi Halfa, a city 30km from the Egyptian border which he hopes to cross in the coming weeks. He told Reuters, "I need to get the visa to Egypt so I can start working again." 

Painter and retired art professor Salah Abdelhay, who fled to Egypt with his wife and two daughters, was able to carry few of his artworks with him. He later told Reuters, "We are afraid for all Sudanese heritage, fine arts, music — everything. These people can destroy everything".