Abdullah is a member of a youthful art scene that gained momentum from the popular uprising against autocrat Omar al-Bashir and finds itself scattered by war four years later. "We've always been repressed, especially during Bashir's time," said 28-year-old Rahiem Shadad, who co-founded Downtown Gallery in Sudan's capital in 2019. Shadad's gallery has raised just over $8,500 of a $30,000 target to support artists financially during the war. Painter and retired art professor Salah Abdelhay fled to Egypt with his wife and two daughters. Reporting by Adam Makary and Fatma Fahmy Editing by Aidan Lewis and Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Persons: Rahiem Shadad, Omar al, Bashir, Yasmeen Abdullah, I'd, Abdullah, autocrat Omar al, We've, Shadad, Muhammed Yusuf, Yusuf, Khalid Abdelrahman, Painter, Salah Abdelhay, Adam Makary, Aidan Lewis, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Downtown, Thomson Locations: Khartoum, Sudan, Cairo, Egypt, CAIRO, Sudan's, Shendi, Omdurman, Wadi Halfa