The exhibition brings together Baghdad Calling and Why Mister, Why? © Geert van Kesteren
Exhibition review - Louise Adcock visits Brighton’s Lighthouse to experience the photography Geert van Kesteren - showing as part of the Brighton Photo Biennial until November 16 2008.
Why Mister, Why? and Baghdad Calling are the works of the internationally acclaimed photojournalist, Geert van Kesteren. The first collection depicts the situation in Iraq during 2003 and 2004, whilst the second focuses upon the stories and photographs of Iraqi refugees in 2006 and 2007.
The exhibition at Lighthouse in Brighton is the first time parts of both collections have been exhibited side by side. Together, they look at some of the effects the war has had on Iraqi civilians after the invasion by coalition forces in 2003.
Images displayed in Why Mister, Why? include American soldiers interacting with Iraqi families and sheet-covered bodies at the side of a mass grave.
A muslim family celebrates Christmas at home. © Geert van Kesteren / Collection Baghdad Calling
Poetically displayed in a way to compliment one another, each image depicts an individual narrative. But as an ensemble, the piece resembles a storyboard, as though depicting stills taken from a feature film.
Some photographs illustrate the brutal tactics of the coalition soldiers, while others subtly capture the problematic balance of power. Geert van Kesteren does not rely upon explicit violence to convey the injustice of war.
One photograph, for example, displays the expressions of fear and confusion on women and children’s faces as a gun ominously hangs in the foreground from the leg of an American soldier.
Geert van Kesteren’s collection of photojournalism is incredibly moving and informative. © Geert van Kesteren
Geert van Kesteren’s work attempts to expose the difficulties and humiliations of ordinary Iraqi life while under the occupation of coalition forces. He attempts to capture the situation in Iraq as independently as possible and the result is a collection of photojournalism that is incredibly moving and informative.
Kesteren spent some time with the American army but he also photographed without troop protection. As a result his photographs offer an alternative insight into life away from the American military.
Photographs of the Shia religious ceremony appear to be an example of this independent photojournalism. The festival he attended was the first in which Shia people were able to ‘celebrate in freedom’ since the end of the Saddam dictatorship.
Four of the artist's works are also displayed on a large box-shaped unit outside Jubilee Library in Brighton. © Geert van Kesteren
The bloody images of the Shia festival depict men who ‘cut their heads and beat blood out from their scalp’ in celebration of Ashura. In the time after the photos were taken, 200 people died when five bombs exploded in the area.
Following the First Gulf War, Shia people in the South and Kurdish people in the North challenged Saddam Hussain’s dictatorship and in 1991, thousands of men, women and children were killed and buried by his troops.
Photographs of mass graves depict the unearthing of some of these bodies from the desert. Wrapped in white sheets, they provide a stark reminder of the brutality of the previous regime.
May 12 2003. Iraq, Baghdad. © Geert van Kesteren
Downstairs is the viewing area of Baghdad Calling; where a series of amateur and professional photographs are shown via film while a voice offers narration and perspective.
In this collection, Geert van Kesteren explores the nature of modern Iraq through the lens of displacement. Meeting Iraqi refugees who now live in Jordan, Syria and Turkey, Kesteren was able to collect professional and amateur photographs, as well as interviews with members of the Iraqi diaspora.
He also uses mobile phone photographs taken by Iraqis inside the border to illustrate the conditions in Iraq. The compilation of this kind of visual and audio material is essential at a time when journalists are unable to report from Baghdad due to issues of personal safety.
The exhibition is running until November 16 2008. © Geert van Kesteren
Whilst Kesteren’s photography is undoubtedly impressive in its message and purpose, the inclusion of Iraqi snapshots offer an additional dimension of immediacy.
A particular moment during the narration of Baghdad Calling, a young voice says: “I feel sorry for the Iraqis on the ground, but for the American soldiers also, they destroyed their souls with these actions.” In this way, the exhibition challenges the act of war in a way that other journalism cannot.
The representation of war emphasises the importance of both artistic and journalistic interrogation. As media emphasis and public thought focus upon the economic downturn, the Brighton Photo Biennial offers a reminder of our involvement in war and its continuing repercussions.
For more information on the Brighton Photo Biennial see www.bpb.org.uk.
