Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project

Iraqi artists Fatin Al-Jumaily and Ghalib Al-Mansoori spent two weeks in Minneapolis this August, talking with Twin Cities residents about their art and their country. Through their art and their presentations, both brought words of peace, a message of the continuing humanitarian suffering in Iraq, and pleas for Americans to support the rebuilding of their country.

"Iraqi Women," by Faten Al-Jumaily

Their art was featured in the exhibit, “The Art of Conflict: American and Iraqi Art in Dialogue,” hosted by the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project. The exhibit brought approximately 15 pieces by Iraqi artists and 15 pieces by American artists together to reflect on and converse about the effects of violent conflict, war and displacement, particularly on Iraqis, veterans, and everyone involved in the Iraq War.

Because of delays in receiving their visas, Al-Jumaily and Al-Mansoori were not able to make it to the U.S. in time for the opening reception. Instead, they presented on their art at a “featured artists” night (see gallery below) and in many other formal and informal contexts.

Two of Ghalib Al-Mansoori's paintings at "The Art of Conflict" exhibit

In her review of the show, Minnesota Public Radio’s Marianne Combs wrote about Al-Jumaily’s piece, “Iraqi Women” (pictured above), “at first glance (it) appears to be an assemblage of colorful dots and lines. During a panel discussion she revealed that for her, the dots represent women, and the lines, fencing. It is only where the women are clustered densely together -supporting one another – that they can break through the binds that oppress them.”

Besides presenting on their art at the gallery, the two visited studios of local artists, toured the city, and spent significant time with their host families, who generously opened their homes to Fatin and Ghalib. They went to Iftar dinners, shared their stories with AmeriCorps volunteers working with refugees, talked candidly with U.S. veterans, and interacted with Twin Cities residents in many other contexts.

Reflecting the focus of The Art of Conflict, both Al-Jumaily and Al-Mansoori consistently talked about the continuing effects of the Iraq War (such as the lack of electricity in Iraq – both reported having electricity for about 1 hour a day). Both urged Americans to provide more support to Iraq and Iraqis in rebuilding their country. Curator Tricia Khutoretsky said about the exhibit, “I was expecting a broader range of artwork about conflict in general, but people were very focused on the Iraq war. I thought most people would be numb to it by now, but the work we got was very charged and very specific. The artists weren’t all necessarily involved directly in the war, but as Americans they wanted to say something about it” (Marianne Combs, “Iraqis and Americans“)

For a review of the show, The Art of Conflict, by Minnesota Public Radio’s Marianne Combs, click here.

Check out this article from Minnesota Public Radio’s Marianne Combs: “Iraqis and Americans: reconciliation through art.” The article reviews IARP’s recent show, The Art of Conflict.

"Mosque" by Matthew Lawler

The Unreturned, directed by IARP volunteer Nate Fisher, was selected for the 5th UNHCR Refugee Film Festival in Tokyo in October 2010.

The Unreturned follows five Iraqis and their families who are among the 40 percent of the country’s middle class who have fled the country since 2003. Without them, Iraq still lacks reliable electricity, clean water, sanitation, and health-care services. This is an unmitigated disaster for Iraq, a shattered nation that desperately needs its native professional class to return and help itself rebuild.

The UNHCR Refugee Film Festival raises awareness of the world’s 43 million refugees and internally displaced persons who are forced to flee due to persecution and conflict. The 5th edition of the festival will present about 20 films from all over the world, with numerous filmmakers and special guests in attendance.

Please click below to donate to IARP and support Iraqi refugees and the rebuilding of Iraq.

From niqash.org: “Restlessness and discontent with the delay in forming the new Iraqi government has prompted four of Iraq’s most prominent NGOs to file a lawsuit with the Federal Supreme Court, the highest judicial body in the country, accusing parliament’s political blocs of ‘deliberately and repeatedly breaching the Constitution and disabling the nomination of candidates for the three presidencies, thus delaying the formation of the Iraqi government.’”

To read the full article, click here.

From niqash.org: “Too often, Iraq is well known for the wrong reasons. If there were Guinness World Records for conflict, it would sadly be well represented. But Fareed Lafta is trying to change that. This young Iraqi grew up in Baghdad has devoted his life to skydiving, astronomy and record-breaking achievements, with the aim of spreading a message of peace, and inspiring his fellow Iraqis to see beyond war…”

To read the full article, click here.

By Sgt. Ben Hutto

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE KALSU, Iraq – Local artists displayed their work as part of an art fair in the Contingency Operating Site Kalsu dining facility, June 2 and 3.

Paintings by 15 artists from the Babil province were put on display and offered for sale.

“The art is beautiful,” said Spc. David Holcombe, a generator mechanic assigned to Headquarters Company, 203rd Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division. “I thought the people around here were mostly farmers. I didn’t know they had so many creative artists.”

The event was put together by the 1411th Civil Affairs Company.

“We wanted to bring a little cultural experience to the [base],” said Capt. Kristen Brockman, the commander of the 1411th CA Company. “The artists in this area have a tough time selling their works to locals in the area, so this is an economic development project for them.”

In order to attract American soldiers, the artists kept their products affordable. Pieces ranged in price from 30 to 50 dollars.

“We felt this was a good opportunity for the soldiers here to carry home something meaningful,” said Brockman, a native of Jackson, N.J. “I think a lot of the art speaks so well about the environment here. The art really captures what the people of this area are like.”

Many of the artists whose work was represented at the event were happy so many soldiers were interested in their work.

“So far, we have sold between 65 or 70 pieces,” said Ali Ghason, a local artist. “We are very happy. This was our only outlet to express ourselves and show what we can do.”

Ghason was happy that American soldiers would be taking his work back to the United States with them.

“We hope our art is a good reflection of our culture to the U.S. people,” he said.
For Holcomb, a native of Leominster, Mass., the piece he purchased is a good way to remember the two deployments he served in Iraq.

“It is something to keep from Iraq to say I was there,” he said. “It will look really nice in my work room back home. Who knows? Some day it may be worth something.”

By Mika Thuening

Thirteen-year old Hassan Khalid was suffering from fever, headaches, and vomiting. He had drunk water from a tap and contracted typhoid. Unfortunately, Hassan is not alone in falling victim to the unsafe water of Iraq. In 2007, the World Health Organization confirmed over 3,300 cases of cholera, a disease that spreads through contaminated water, resulting in at least 14 deaths.[1] The number one killer of children under 5 years of age is water borne diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid, and hepatitis.[2] Although these diseases are preventable by treating water for human consumption, millions of Iraqis remain at risk due to the lack of access.  According to the Red Cross, 40% of Iraqis lack access to clean water.[3] More »

Students at Perpich Center Arts High School in Minneapolis, USA recently created postcards to send to students in Iraq as part of their “Women and Water” project. The students also wrote messages on the backs of the postcards. Below is a sample of what will be sent to Iraq.

If your school would like to be involved in the Iraqi Art Project, please contact us.

A new documentary tells the story of Iraq’s middle-class refugee crisis: www.theunreturned.com

IARP will host a free screening of Nathan Fisher’s award winning documentary August 14; 8:00 pm at Tarnish and Gold Gallery.

You can find Tarnish and Gold at 1511 Marshall St. NE Minneapolis, 55413.  The gallery’s hours are Tuesday-Saturday; 3:00 pm-8:00 pm.