Shock and Awe-Inspiring

Chris Otchy

Christopher Brownfield may have only been a liaison officer in the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad from 2006-2007, but his mission of aiding communication between our cultures at that time had only just begun. After earning the trust and friendship of a coterie of Iraqi artists, Brownfield has brought their work to New York for an exhibition at the Pomegranate Gallery entitled “Oil on Landscape: Art from Wartime Contemporaries in Baghdad." (An interview with Brownfield on the opening night of the exhibition can be seen on Friction.tv.)

While one might expect an Iraqi art show to be made up solely of intense portrayals of tragic loss and senseless violence, the exhibition shows a surprising range of emotions. While there certainly are plenty of tragic elements (notably, Mohammed al Hamadany’s “Night of Fire," a series of oil paintings depicting a local reaction to the massive “shock and awe” air strike engineered by U.S. in 2003), there is also a degree of serenity. Sadik Jaffar’s photorealistic charcoal sketches reveal the quiet beauty of everyday street life. Sat’aar Darweesh’s “Childhood” paintings expose the confusion of that age in modern Kandinsky-esque abstractions.

Overall, the show unearths a degree of humanity in the Iraqi citizens -- a perspective far too rare in our newspapers. One walks away with a feeling that humans have commonalities no matter where we live, what language we speak, or where our allegiances lie.

“Oil on Landscape: Art from Wartime Contemporaries in Baghdad" at the Pomegranate Gallery (133 Greene St., New York) runs through June 21, 2008.