Your work is a mix of art, science, political activism and research. How does that fit together? 

My mother is a doctor and my father is a painter and I have always been interested in both science and art. I studied physics in Khartoum and visual communication in Berlin Weißensee. Growing up in Sudan, art was always political. In recent years I got involved in investigative research and open-source investigations. With the systematic violations in Sudan and across the region I felt a need not just for artistic expression that is shown in galleries, but also for more concrete statements and evidence collection. As part of an initiative called the Centre for Environmental and Social Studies (CESS), I investigate ecological issues such as extractivism.

What is extractivism? 

Extractivism is the systematic, large-scale extraction of natural resources such as gold, copper, or cobalt that often causes lasting ecological damage. It can also involve violence and displacement of indigenous and local communities to exploit their land, resources and labour.  

What role does it play in Sudan? 

Gold is Sudan's number one commodity. It is embedded in international supply chains, not just as a luxury, but also widely used in electronics, including electric vehicles, computers, semiconductors and circuit boards. As electrification expands and AI drives the construction of increasingly powerful computers and data centers, there is a high demand for gold right now. Looking at satellite images from Sudan I found that gold extractivism has rapidly proliferated during the war and saw a direct connection between gold and the level of violence in different areas.

How so? 

The desire to conquer and control certain areas is connected to gold deposits. For example, in the areas of Eastern Darfur and Western Cordofan, fighting has intensified and many people have died because of gold extractivism taking place there. To end the conflict in Sudan, you first need to dry up the supply chain that militant groups in Sudan profit from.

Aren't there international sanctions banning the import of gold from Sudan? 

There are loopholes. Sudanese gold has entered international markets through official exports but also extensive smuggling networks, often passing through neighbouring countries such as Egypt, Chad, and South Sudan before reaching major trading hubs, particularly the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Dubai has long been an important destination for Sudanese gold, but weaknesses in traceability and oversight have also made it possible for conflict-linked or illicitly traded gold to enter international supply chains. Some companies in Europe buy this gold as if it is legal. 

Can you give an example? 

In 2024, we investigated the smelters that supply gold to Volkswagen in Germany using company reports. Each smelter has an identification number, and the number that Volkswagen listed as its supplier is Sudan's national smelter, which actually stopped functioning after being bombarded in May 2023. It has since been taken over by the RSF. When we asked Volkswagen about this they said that the gold came through a third party in the UAE.

Is gold extractivism more lucrative during a war? Would it not be in the interest of global customers to import gold from a peaceful country? 

Dismantling the framework of a sovereign state that monitors commodities will reduce the price of that commodity and the costs and difficulties of extracting it. All you need as a buyer is an armed group that takes control of a particular mine and delivers the gold to you. Functioning state institutions can create difficulties for the investor. It is much easier to create militant groups, supply them with weapons, and help them to control certain areas without taking control of the state as a whole. This has been a very lucrative market for the UAE since the Arab spring.

Which conflicts are the UAE involved in beyond Sudan? 

In Yemen, the UAE supported the Southern Transitional Council and other local armed groups, gaining substantial influence over southern ports, coastal territories, oil and gas facilities, and strategic maritime routes connecting the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. In Libya, the UAE became one of the principal external supporters of Khalifa Haftar, whose forces controlled large parts of eastern Libya and important oil-producing territories.

You have been using satellite images of gold mines in your investigative work. How have you translated that material into your artistic practice?

Gold extractivism is an injury to the land and the people. To me, satellite images of goldmines have the aesthetic of a wound:  They look like injuries to the land, both beautiful and violent at the same time. I work with these images to produce interactive, kinetic sculptures. 

What would you like audiences to understand from your work? 

I want to question the mainstream misconception about wars, the idea they are happening somewhere remote and have nothing to do with us. If you track commodities, you understand every war is connected to what we consume.  

Your work focuses not only on those who benefit from the war, but also the civil society that resists it. What is left of that in Sudan after three years of war? 

Like in most of the Global South, Sudan’s civil society resistance is based on decentralisation. During  the  2019 uprising, there were neighbourhood resistance committees. They created a decentralised movement that was connected through nodes of communication and collective decision making. This movement later turned into the emergency response rooms, one of the main grassroots networks working to save lives during the war. They provide basic necessities through communal kitchens, helping repair and operate hospitals, and establishing small field clinics. Their work is based on mutual aid and collective survival, turning these practices into a form of political organisation.  

In your artistic work you use the image of the mushroom to depict a resilient civil society. Why? 

The mushroom is my protagonist, the hero of everything. Whatever it tries to move, whatever force it is confronted with, eventually the mushroom takes over. It is solid, peaceful and stable. And to come back to the decentralised political work: mushrooms are connected through a huge underground network that cannot be destroyed by cutting off one of the heads. The other parts can still flourish.