Check out this article posted today by MPR's Marianne Combs:
Sheila Regan of Mnartists.org has written an insightful and interesting article on the exhibit!
Click the link to read:
This Saturday, we'll be featuring a director's presentation of The Unreturned, a documentary film about the displaced Iraqi middle class. The screening will take place at Tarnish and Gold gallery. Doors at 8pm, film at 8:30pm followed by a question session with Nathan Fisher. Come early and browse the exhibit... which is finally complete with all Iraqi and American artworks. Event is FREE + free popcorn.
The Iraq War has caused one of the most severe refugee crises in human history, but it often seems like the displacement is an afterthought when people discuss the war. Anytime you have a war, there will be refugees. In the case of Iraq, 20% of the population was displaced, including 40% of Iraq's middle class. Back in 2007 when I started working on this project, I wondered how people could justify saying that the war was a net positive for the Iraqi people when they'd fled en masse.
What inspired you to pack up and journey to the Middle East to take on this
project? Did that inspiration change
during the course of the filming?
I realized that I hadn't seen much
coverage of the war from an Iraqi perspective. I also realized that I didn't
know any Iraqis, and I felt it was sort of my responsibility as an American
citizen to get some unmediated information about the effects of this war. At
first, my goal was just to get Iraqi refugees on camera and see what they had
to say. That goal never really changed, but it was refined once I realized that
the footage I had primarily told the story of middle-class, professional
Iraqis. I began to realize that the people I interviewed in Amman and Damascus
were the same people who could be rebuilding Iraq but weren't.
Did you have a hard time acquiring the proper documents and authorization to
film in the Middle East? Were the film subjects
welcoming or hesitant?
We traveled to Syria and Jordan on ordinary tourist visas. I shot with a Panasonic DVX-100B, which is what people call a "prosumer" camera. It's got enough manual control to really be useful for professional cinematography, but it's just small enough that I could plausibly say that I was just a tourist. This allowed me to get my camera past customs at the Amman airport, and through the overland border into Syria. We didn't really have problems shooting on the street in Jordan. In Syria, it became obvious pretty quickly that there were secret police everywhere so we sought and received permission to film from the government. We just hung out in Damascus for a week while we waited for our application to film to be approved by the Ministry of Information.
We met many more Iraqis than just the five main characters who ended up in the film. All of the Iraqis we met were very cordial and welcoming to us. We met many who didn't want to be on camera, but no one really got mad at us or told us to go away. Matt Bowlby, my translator, is an American who speaks fluent Arabic and I think that opened a lot of doors for us.
What aspects of war were you most interested in highlighting with your film?
Well, first and foremost, I wanted to
call attention to the refugee disaster. As the film took shape, I realized that
it was really important to highlight the catch-22 that these displaced Iraqis
won't return until Iraq is safe but Iraq won't become safe until these professional
Iraqis come back and help rebuild the country. It was also really important for
me to portray Iraqis as normal people that Western audiences could relate to.
This almost never happens in Western cinema.
How have audiences here in the U.S. reacted to The Unreturned so
far?
Do you have plans to follow up with the subjects in the film to see where they are now?
How has the film influenced you as a an artist and filmmaker, and where would
you like to go with what you've accomplished thus far?
I've never directed or edited a feature film before, so this was a huge learning experience. The film was actually my master's thesis for a Media Studies degree at The New School in New York. I think I have a better handle now on how to break down a complex topic and present it visually. Next time, I'd like to make a film that's maybe not so reliant on text and is told even more visually. I really tried to keep the amount of text down in this film, but it's hard when you can't assume your audience knows anything about Iraq.
The Unreturned: FREE SCREENING!!
Saturday, August 14th. Doors at 8pm. Movie at 8:30pm.
Tarnish and Gold Gallery. 1511 Marshall Street NE, Minneapolis.
Presented by the Iraqi American Reconciliation Project and The Art of Conflict.
See you there!
Click the image above to link to our facebook album containing a few glimpses of the opening reception... more on the way!!
As some of you may know... we opened the exhibit on Thursday evening without the Iraqi artist's work. This was an unexpected turn of events. Unfortunately there were visa and passport issues which delayed the artists. There was nothing that could be done. The update today is that the artists will be arriving tonight and we will have their artwork up later this week. We'll keep you posted on changes to the scheduled events... there will be opportunities to meet and speak with the artists coming up. We will also post here as soon as the art is up in the gallery for viewing.
As disappointed as we were in this turn of events, we are grateful that the artists are still on their way safely and able to visit Minneapolis. We consider this part of our story, and hope that you realize how difficult cross-cultural exchange has been between ourselves and Iraq. This is what we will continue to focus our efforts on through the sister city arrangement, and IARP's work.
Fortunately, we were able to fill the gallery with the American artist's work, and the event was still a huge success! Thank you to everyone who came out to see the work and everyone who helped facilitate the event.
Opening night photos coming soon!!
We've been swamped getting ready for the show! And a little worried, getting visas and paperwork for our Iraqi guests has not been an easy process, but things seem to be smooth sailing and we're really excited for next week. We'd like to apologize for our lack on content this past week, but we have plans to make up for it next week!
Coming soon... behind the scenes peeks at the show installation. Plus upcoming posts on the ladies behind the Tarnish and Gold Gallery, Nathan Fisher on "The Unreturned," and details on our latest artist addition to the show, Sean Smuda's Blown Derivatives project.
But for now....
Something cozy for you to ponder. Several years ago, in protest of the Danish, and UK and U.S. involvement in the Iraq war, Danish artist Marianne Joregenson instigated a collaborative public art display which included 4000 pink square knitted by volunteers. The squares formed a knitted cozy that was placed on top of a tank, outside the Nikolaj Contemporary Art Center in Copenhagen. Word spread about the opportunity to contribute to the knitted creation, and enough people showed up to complete the project. It is still, 4 years later, a relevant work of art.
Image Credit: Holly Pickett via NY Times (Click picture for full article)
Here in Minneapolis, we have the awe-inspiring Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the always innovative Walker Art Center... where the precious collections and the special shows are regularly available to us. On a hot day like those we've had recently, these institutions provide a cool escape from the heat, where we can browse and revel in beautiful works of art. But imagine if it wasn't so easy....
Click on the link for a must see piece from the NY Times on the current state of the Iraq Modern Art Museum:
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/07/13/arts/design/1247468437402/iraqs-modern-art-museum.html
Curious about the art work featured in the show? We've tried to keep in under wraps, building the anticipation as we approach the opening reception with little hints here and there....
However, today we decided to share a little. Click on the box below to connect to our facebook event page, where you can do two things.
1. RSVP to our event
2. take a look at some of the art work, which we know, you can't wait to see in person!
