Lot 13

Ahmed Abushariaa (Sudanese, born 1966)
Untitled (Forest), undated
Signed ‘Abushariaa’ (lower right)
Ink and watercolour on paper
60 x 90.5 cm
Ksh 285,000 – 395,000
(US$) 2,500 – 3,500
Provenance: direct from the artist

Sold Ksh 352,200

Ahmed Abushariaa’s intricate works on paper intertwine elements of traditional and modern Nubian and Sudanese culture, Islamic faith and reflections of contemporary life. His practice is influenced by the Khartoum School – the modernist movement formed in Sudan in the 1960s which sought to develop a visual vocabulary reflecting the distinctive identity of the newly independent nation.

Abushariaa studied Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Khartoum but left Sudan in the mid-nineties and settled for some years in Nairobi. He now lives and works in Kampala, where his work has become deeply influential within the local art scene.

From a series of work from some years ago, this painting is an expression of the way the artist saw the nearby forest to his village, especially during the rainy season, in his early childhood.

Abushariaa has exhibited extensively in Uganda and Kenya and has had solo exhibitions in Norway, Germany and Sudan, and group exhibitions in Canada, Denmark, Monaco and the UK. His work is held in the art collections of The African Museum of Art in Seoul and the World Bank in Washington D.C. Recent exhibitions include ARCOlisboa, Johannesburg Biennale, Abu Dhabi Art Fair, all 2020, and Rendezvous, a group exhibition at Afriart Gallery, Kampala, 2021.