Ahmed Umar, Talitin, 2024, performance documentation. Courtesy: the artist; photograph: Jakob Svensen.
Based in Oslo, where he relocated from Sudan as a political refugee in 2008, Ahmed Umar earned a master's degree from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts in 2016. His work explores identity, religion and cultural values, often reflecting his experiences as a queer person from a Muslim background, through a diverse practice encompassing ceramics, jewellery and live performances that blends Sudanese and Western influences. In 2015, Umar publicly came out as gay, becoming a prominent figure for LGBTQ+ individuals from Muslim backgrounds in both Norway and Sudan. His journey is documented in the 2020 film The Art of Sin. He has forthcoming solo exhibitions at Museo Universitario del Chopo, Mexico City, in February, and Stuttgart Art Museum in November.
