Uitschieters (Rootpusher) (2024)

The glossy stainless-steel figure from the series Uitschieters is central to Susanne Khalil Yusef’s exploration of migration and the longing to take root. The face, surrounded by spikes jutting in all directions, expresses the tension between clinging and rejecting: like roots seeking grip, but also like the spikes of a pufferfish inflating in fear. The figure gazes melancholically, as if pain lies just beneath the surface, yet remains soft and approachable. Its spiky hair refers to Handala, the iconic drawing by Palestinian artist Naji Al-Ali — a refugee child with unruly hair, always barefoot, who cannot grow up as long as returning home remains impossible.