Recently I visited the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco and came across an important exhibit called “Eye Level in Iraq”. It is a behind the scenes look at the faces of a war ravaged people, and something that many of us who’ve never been to war, or lived in a war torn country can even begin to comprehend.
Why there will not be peace-image via Huffington Post by Thorne Anderson
These incredibly haunting photographs were taken by two brave American photo journalists who left the safety of our troops and traveled as normal people into the countryside of Iraq, drinking tea, and documenting the impact of war and some of the most intimate and personal daily realities of the Iraqi people.
On going grief-image via Huffington Post by Kael Alford
In March of this year it was 10 years since the war in Iraq started and along with this exhibit at the DeYoung, PBS took a look back as well and interviewed photo journalists Kael Alford and Thorne Anderson about their experience and their photographs.
“In the early days of the Iraq war, photojournalists risked their lives to capture the daily existence of Iraqis in the middle of conflict. NewsHour correspondent Spencer Michels goes behind the frame to talk with photographers about communicating urgency through image and the separation between journalism and activism.” PBS News Hour
Worth the watch.
I am a peacenik as I stated in my recent Memorial Day Reflections. For me it is so important to remember that behind big lables, like “our troops” and “the enemy” are actual human beings. People of flesh and blood. We are all born the same way, and we all die at some point. Why then do we spend so much time differentiating ourselves?
It’s also important to remember there are two sides to every story, and that what we see covered by our media here in the US is just one story…a story about foreign policy and a validation of what we are doing. But behind that story is also a story that we never see, one of the civilian experience which is a quieter battle.
the devastation of daily life-image via 7X7
Baghdad fell to the allied forces on April 9, 2003. It is estimated that at least 650,000 Iraqis died as a result of the invasion and its aftermath, which saw public health decline and increased insecurity for Iraqi citizens. In the decade since, more than 4,000 American soldiers have perished in combat and many more have been severely wounded.
A decade later, reflecting on why this work was made, Kael Alford has stated “I consider these photographs invitations to the viewer to learn more, to explore the relationships between public policy objectives and their real world execution and to consider the legacies of human grief, anger, mistrust and dismay that surely follow violent conflict. I hope that these images will also open a window on the grace of Iraq and perhaps help to give a few of these memories a place to rest.”
To truly understand the terrible price people pay for war, Eye Level in Iraq is an important exhibit to see. It will be at the DeYoung until June 13. Don’t miss it if you can help it. Thank you to Ms. Kael Alford and Mr. Thorne Anderson for your art, and thanks to the deYoung for exhibiting these photos.
What are your thoughts? Please share from the heart and with respect. Thanks!
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