Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project

To make this important show possible, we need to raise $5,000 for the expenses of bringing Iraqi artists to the United States. Please consider making a donation to bring Iraqi and American art together. Art has a unique power to make “indescribable” experiences real. Your donation will enable artists to make experiences of war and displacement real for Minnesotans and Americans. Stories of the Iraq war and displacement, as with all stories, are made real only in the telling. This show will tell our stories through art.

We sincerely appreciate your support of our work for reconciliation between Iraqis and Americans. This is how your donation will be used:

• $2500 will cover airfare and visa expenses for an Iraqi artist to travel to the U.S. and talk to Americans about her or his art and personal experiences with war and displacement
• $500 will cover the shipping costs of bringing Iraqi artists’ original pieces to Minneapolis for the show
• $200 will allow us to reach out to underserved Minnesotan communities, such as refugees and veterans, to engage them in the show
• $100 will bring a refugee or Iraq War veteran to present on their experiences with war and displacement during the show
• $25 will provide a meal for the visiting Iraqi artists

If you would like a letter verifying your tax-deductible donation, please make checks out to our fiscal sponsor, Springboard for the Arts, with IARP in the memo line and mail to 1346 Westwood Hills Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55426.

For the artists, the exhibition offers the chance to wrestle with legacies of war and violent conflict. Artists will be challenged and challenge others to sift through the effects of war and create an authentic expression of their reality. For the Minnesotan and American audiences who visit the gallery or view the permanent online gallery, the art will generate new ways of viewing war, violent conflict, and displacement. Audiences, especially refugees, veterans, and others with experience of war, will develop an understanding of art as an important way to express, synthesize, and perhaps comprehend experiences that go beyond the realm of normal human interaction. The show will also help Twin Cities residents better understand the enduring effects of communal violence around the world.

Thank you very much for your support. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like additional information.