As part of GU-Q’s Seeing Sudan: Politics Through Art Hiwaraat Conference, CIRS collaborated with Qatar Musuem’s General Collection department to showcase some their Sudanese jewelry collection and original archival photographs. Curated by Ala Kheir, Nisreen Kuku, and Tatyana Mirghani, the exhibition is an endeavour to reconnect, reclaim, and reimagine the Sudanese archive. Born from a shared desire to unify a scattered archival diaspora, the works presented here reflect the living nature of archives—not as static records, but as continuous expressions of culture, memory, and identity. This exhibition is just a fragment of a much larger, collective archive—one that holds the layered past, contested present, and imagined futures of Sudan. Through art, we breathe new life into old stories, reasserting ownership over our histories and forging new pathways forward.

The exhibition reflects on how Sudan’s past continues to shape its present. Historical images are placed alongside contemporary works to surface voices that have often been overlooked. Trade beads that once moved along regional and transcontinental routes appear here as objects of identity and ceremony. Hebron glass beads, Venetian millefiori, and Bohemian glass are shown for their craft and for the meanings they gathered in Sudanese life, including protection, social status, and memory.

A selection of traditional jewelry reveals how aesthetics, belief, and community practice come together. Viewers will find pendants inspired by palm frond boxes associated with blessing and protection, drum shaped ornaments marked with a five pointed star, and a coin based necklace that recalls the long circulation of British gold coins in Sudanese adornment. The display also introduces the shawshaw hairpin, crafted in silver or gold with a ring, bead, red thread, and delicate chains. It has been worn in late pregnancy within protective rituals and speaks to women’s roles in carrying heritage forward. Collectively, these objects illustrate how Sudanese makers transformed materials into symbols that hold memory, faith, and social meaning.

Archival photographs and contemporary images deepen this story. Early twentieth century pictures, often produced through foreign lenses, sit in dialogue with work by Sudanese photographers who document everyday gatherings, streets, and moments of political change. The result is a layered view of Sudan that centers community knowledge, artistic practice, and cultural resilience.

Memories of a Changing Sudan

Curated by Ala Kheir
GU-Q Brown Wall Photography Exhibition

Complementing the library exhibition, Memories of a Changing Sudan presents an evocative collection of photographs by Sudanese artists. On view on the GU-Q Brown Wall until October 6, 2025, the exhibit features intimate portraits, street scenes, and revolutionary moments that capture the pulse of Sudanese life, from everyday gatherings to the historic sit-in of 2019.

Sudan has long been photographed through outsider perspectives, often shaped by colonial curiosity or distance. Over the past two decades, however, a generation of self-taught Sudanese photographers has reframed this narrative, documenting their communities with empathy, immediacy, and authenticity. Their work forms a living archive, a collective act of witnessing that preserves the spirit of Sudan through its people, homes, and histories.

Article by Maryam Daud, CIRS Administrative Coordinator