Throughout history, there have always been those who were wrongfully accused. Since the sixties, many innocent Sudanese have been taken into custody, interrogated, tortured, and in some cases lost their lives. Having suffered himself, El-Mur wanted to highlight the humanity in those who endured this mistreatment, inspired by his research into the history of ‘mug shot’, the repetitive bland nature of which desensitizes us to the human stories of these individuals. El-Mur offers stories of hope, resilience and freedom.
Elmurs deadpan faces always hold within them a sense of narrative, of a story to be told. These paintings continue in this vein. As a painter, filmmaker, photographer, and author, it is unsurprising that he brings many of these elements into play within this project. His colours are always strong because of the bright light in Sudan and the colourful clothes of the populace. However, his current painting style has become more refined in the last few years with exhibitions at MACAAL, The Sharjah Art Museum and the Sharjah Art Foundation. Each painting tells its own story of the individual within the wider historical narrative of the penal system, forcing us to reflect on our assumptions and prejudices.
This is the first time this new series will be exhibited from which two works have recently been purchased by Centre Pompidou, Paris.
