Ahmed Umar ( ar, أحمد عمر, born 10 February 1988) is a Sudanese-Norwegian visual artist and

LGBT activist Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movements are social movements that advocate for LGBT people in society. Some focus on equal rights, such as the ongoing movement for same-sex marriage, while others focus on liberation, as in the ...

who campaigns for gay visibility. Umar grew up in a conservative family in Sudan, before fleeing to Norway where Umar artistic work mixes Sudanese (e.g., the Black Pharaohs of the ancient

Kingdom of Kush The Kingdom of Kush (; Egyptian language, Egyptian: 𓎡𓄿𓈙𓈉 ''kꜣš'', Akkadian language, Assyrian: ''Kûsi'', in LXX grc, Κυς and Κυσι ; cop, ''Ecōš''; he, כּוּשׁ ''Kūš'') was an ancient kingdom in Nubia, ce ...

) and western influences by blending stories as a foundation for the works. Their experience of coming out as one of the first openly gay Sudanese was detailed in the film The Art of Sin.

Early life

Ahmed Umar was born in Sudan, on the 10th of February 1988, into a traditional

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

family that lived between

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

and Sudan.

Moving to Norway

Umar arrived to Norway in 2008 as a political refugee from

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

, which at the time was one of seven nations that executed people for same-sex conduct. Umar obtained a bachelor’s degree in Printmaking 2014 from

Oslo National Academy of the Arts The Oslo National Academy of the Arts ( no, Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo, ''KHiO'') is a university college in Oslo, Norway, that provides education in visual arts, design and performing arts. It is one of two public institutes of higher learning in ...

, followed by a master’s degree in Fine Art. Umar lives and works in Oslo, and became a renowned artist known for mixing Sudanese (e.g., the Black Pharaohs of the ancient

) and western influences by blending stories as a foundation for the works. Umar art involves live performances and work with ceramics, jewellery, and prints. Umar's work has been exhibited at different national and international institutes.

Art and LGBT activism

In 2015, Umar came out on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

as one of the first openly gay man from Sudan, causing a large portion of the Sudanese community to turn against him, including relatives. Umar experience of coming out as one of the first openly gay Sudanese was detailed in the film The Art of Sin. Umar described the experience before coming out in an interview by

My.Kali ''My Kali'' is an online pan-Arab LGBT magazine, published in Amman, Jordan in English since 2007 and in Arabic since 2016. It is named after its publisher, openly gay Jordanian model and activist Khalid "Kali" Abdel-Hadi. History ''My Kali'' wa ...

as:

I believed that I was cursed and that
Allah Allah (; ar, الله, translit=Allāh, ) is the common Arabic word for God. In the English language, the word generally refers to God in Islam. The word is thought to be derived by contraction from '' al- ilāh'', which means "the god", an ...
would punish me with eternal unhappiness,
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
and die like
Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. Regarded as one of the greatest singers in the ...
, and that I will bring shame to my family. I wanted so badly to die. I was so lonely.

Umar uses personal experiences to discuss queer lives in Sudan and internationally. Umar shared their story writing ''Pilgrimage of Love'' chapter in This Arab Is Queer (2022), an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

written by Arab

LGBTQ+ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

writers. In an interview, with the Sudanese magazine 500 Words Magazine, about Art and identify where Umar reiterated his believe that ‘''there were entirely homosexual groups of men living in the

''’ which challenges the deep rooted believe that homophobia is entrenched in the Sudanese society. Other examples are discussed below.

Islam in Umar's Work

Although Umar is an atheist, but having grown up in a conservative Islamic environment; Islam and arabic culture plays a role in Umar identity and art . Many of Umar sculptures were inspired by Quran, verse like Would any of you like to eat a dead brothers flesh?,''' ( ar, أَيُحِبُّ أَحَدُكُمْ أَنْ يَأْكُلَ لَحْمَ أَخِيهِ مَيْتًا فَكَرِهْتُمُوهُ), from Quran Chapter 49 verse 12, became the name of one of their work, and What Lasts! ( ar, ماذا تبقا) which describes the story of

Lot Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas * Land lot, an area of land * Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...

who was sent to the cities of

Sodom and Gomorrah Sodom and Gomorrah () were two legendary biblical cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1–28). They are mentioned frequ ...

as a prophet. UMAR 2016 sculpture titled ''' Purification set''' shows the tools used for

Wudu Wuḍūʾ ( ar, الوضوء ' ) is the Islamic procedure for cleansing parts of the body, a type of ritual purification, or ablution. The 4 Fardh (Mandatory) acts of ''Wudu'' consists of washing the face, arms, then wiping the head and the feet ...

. Umar's Jewelry work

Hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...

( ar, حجاب) navigate the strong link between religion amulets and superstition using

Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...

tradition and strung together a 365 amulet, one for every day of the year, to protect the wearer from harm and bring luck. Many of Umar's drawings has arabic words and scribbles.

Sudan in Umar's Work

Umar's work embrace Sudanese culture, e.g., ''If you no longer have a family, make your own with cla''y ( ar, الماعنده أهل, يعمل أهل من طين), a Sudanese proverb, which deals with Umar's family, epically his father, disowning them after coming out. In 2018, Umar became a

naturalised Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...

Norwegian citizen, and attended the citizenship ceremony wearing an outfit that mixes Sudanese and Norwegian cultures, i.e., Identity-Embroidered.

Carrying the face of ugliness

Umar popularity grew as the face of Sudanese LGBT community but animosity toward them is also growing. Sudanese saying “''carrying the face of ugliness''” ( ar, شايل وش القباحة), is typically used for someone which describes a person who does something unfamiliar, confronts an issue and takes the blame for it. In this case, being gay. Umar completed the photo-shotting for this project in Sudan during filming The Art of Sin ( ar, فن الخطيئة) with Umar taking photographs with other Sudanese LGBT, but with Umar’s face obscuring theirs. Pictures from the project were made into graffities in Oct. 2022, by Kulturbyrået Mesén, at of Oslo main station, airport station and Ski station.

Sudanese Revolution

Umar eternal quest in exploring their own identity and context was further manifested while supporting the

Sudanese Revolution The Sudanese Revolution was a major shift of political power in Sudan that started with street protests throughout Sudan on 19 December 2018 and continued with sustained civil disobedience for about eight months, during which the 2019 Sudane ...

through sculpture ''Thawr, Thawra'' ( ar, ثورة, ثورة). In June 2019, Umar joined

NYC Pride March The NYC Pride March is an annual event celebrating the LGBTQ community The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay, bisexual, t ...

wearing Sudanese-inspired outfit. In 2020, during the Agenda arts and crafts event organised by

, Umar discussed and showed case their arts that deals with the relationship between art and democracy in the context of Sudan and its 30 years dictatorship. In 2021, ''In God's hand'' photo project showed the revolutionary women of Sudan, ''The Kandakas''. The

carried hope for Umar to live freely in a democratic nation where everyone is valued equally.

The Nile Pride 2030

Umar convinced that there will be a parade in Sudan before they die. Pride for Umar is akin to

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

or Eid, and that why Umar actively promote The Nile Pride ( ar, عِزّة النيل) 2030, the pride festival that will take place in Khartoum, Sudan in 2030. However, in a country where it is virtually impossible to register LGBT organisations, the objective does not seem to be the event/year but rather spreading awareness and challenging the narrative.

Awards and honours

2021

* KunstnerLiv documentary show, NRK. * Nominee for Sandefjord Kunstforening Art Award. * Artist's work grant,

Arts Council Norway The Arts Council Norway ( no, Norsk kulturråd, often shortened to ''Kulturrådet'') is the official arts council for Norway. Based in Oslo, it is a Norwegian state institution created in 1965 as a result of a parliamentary decision in 1964. Art ...

2018

* Young and newly established artist's work grant, Arts Council Norway. * Atelier Kunstnerforbundet Studio residency. * NOoSPHERE Artist Residency Award, New York City. * Scheibler Foundation Art and Craft Award. 2017 Debutante Award, Kunsthånverk, Norske kunst og hånverkers Årsutstilling, National Museum of Decorative Arts, Trondheim. 2016 The Art Student Grant from BKH, The Norwegian Relief Fund for Visual Artists.

Selected public collections

2021 What Lasts! ( ar, ماذا تبقا ،

Sarcophagus A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek ...

), Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium. 2020 Forbidden Prayer: The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (An installation for the embassy of Norway in Khartoum, Sudan). 2019 Thawr, Thawra ( ar, ثورة, ثورة), The Norwegian National Museum, Oslo. 2019

to Hannah ( ar, من الحجاب للحنة), National Museum of Decorative Arts,

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

. 2017

(Annual Protection, ar, حجاب), Oslo Municipality Art Collection.

Selected work

2023 Glowing Phalanges: Prayer Beads 99, (''planned'')

Kunstnernes Hus Kunstnernes Hus (Norwegian for "Artists' House") is an art gallery in Oslo, Norway. It is Norway's largest gallery under the direction of artists, and has served as a major center for exhibits of Norwegian and international contemporary art. It i ...

, Oslo. 2022 Solace in Clay,

International Academy of Ceramics The International Academy of Ceramics (IAC) or Académie Internationale de la Céramique (AIC) is an international professional association of ceramic artists. It is based in Geneva and operates worldwide. Since 1958 the IAC has been affiliated wi ...

, UN, Geneva. 2021 In God's hand, Ha Gamle Prestegard, Oslo. 2020 The Art of Sin ( ar, فن الخطيئة) a documentary film. 2019 If you no longer have a family, make your own with clay ( ar, الماعنده أهل, يعمل أهل من طين), Last Frontier art space, NYC, USA. 2017 Kunsten a være syndig, short documentary film.

Notes

References

External links

* .
Ahmed Umer
Facebook.
A day in Ahmed Umer life
Youtube (in Norwegian).
Ahmed Umar: Artist portrait
Youtube (in

Sudanese arabic Sudanese Arabic, also referred to as the Sudanese dialect (), Colloquial Sudanese () or locally as Common Sudanese () refers to the various related varieties of Arabic spoken in Sudan as well as parts of Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Chad. Sudane ...

with English subtitles) {{DEFAULTSORT:Umar, Ahmed Sudanese activists Sudanese artists Queer artists Gay artists 1988 births 21st-century LGBT people Living people Sudanese Internet celebrities Sudanese gay actors Sudanese LGBT artists Sudanese contemporary artists Sudanese painters Non-binary artists