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After the fall of a 30 year long dictatorship in 2019, Sudan entered a period of uncertainty—a mixture of fragile hope and lingering fear filled the air. No one realized that this was merely the calm before the storm, a brief respite before the upheaval of 2023 that would shatter all confidence at once. It was during this fleeting moment of stillness that the photographs for THE WANING SEASON were taken in the capital, Khartoum.
Khartoum lies at the heart of Sudan, where the White Nile and Blue Nile converge, forming the nexus of Omdurman to the west, Khartoum to the south, and Bahri to the north. THE WANING SEASON is not a documentary about Khartoum but rather a subjective reflection through the eyes of an outsider. It does not seek to provide answers—it only raises more questions.
The city appears dark and cold, despite the relentless brightness and heat. The streets are harsh and dusty, the buildings silent witnesses to transience, their walls marked with painted messages. Everything is at a standstill, a sense of stagnation lingering—a moment suspended in time before night finally gives way to day. The city rests, movement reduced to a whisper. There is little traffic, few people. Years of dictatorship have drained it, leaving it in a state of exhaustion. The same stillness seeps into its people, where hope feels too fragile to grasp.
Yet, in contrast to this paralysis, there is something almost gentle—the movements, gestures, and words of the few who are already on their way. Like an elixir, their presence restores a fleeting sense of normalcy.
Oliver Gerhartz is an architect. In 2020, his firm was commissioned to renovate the German Ambassador’s residence in Khartoum. The project was never completed. On April 15, 2023, engineers, supervisors, and craftsmen left the construction site for the last time. That same day, war erupted in Sudan with a brutality few could have imagined.
Since then—as of January 2025—200,000 people have lost their lives, more than 11 million have been displaced, and over half of the population now suffers from hunger. This book is an observation of individuals and the uneasy moment before the present season of anxiety, conflict, and loss.
