London, Aug 20, IRNA – The Imperial War Museum London will display a car salvaged from the bombing of the historic Al-Mutanabbi street book market in Baghdad in 2007 as a centre-piece as a new exhibition on the impact of modern warfare on civilians in September.
The bombing in the Iraqi capital killed thirty-eight people and wounded many more, and is viewed as an attack on Baghdad’s cultural life. No one has ever claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Museum has worked with Turner Prize-winning artist, Jeremy Deller, to present the destroyed vehicle at a time when civilians casualties in wars has grown to 90 per cent compared with just 10 per cent at the beginning of the 20th Century.
“It’s unusual to see anything from the conflict in Iraq ‘in life’ so I was interested in being able to show this car to the public, initially in the US and now the UK,” Deller said.
Diane Lees, director-general of the Imperial War Museum said she was “incredibly grateful for the insight and effort” that the British award-winning artist has invested in the acquisition and installation of the remarkable exhibit.
“We hope Baghdad, 5 March 2007, will prove a thought-provoking addition to our permanent Collections and encourage visitors to consider not just this car, but all our exhibits, in a new light,” Lees said.
The exhibit will be surrounded by some of the most powerful military hardware of the past 100 years at the museum which explores how the history of modern conflict affects everyone, from the front line to the home front.
Discussions, some led by witnesses to the conflict, are also planned at the museum in September to take place in the shadow of the destroyed car salvaged from the 2007 bombing of the Baghdad market, seen as an attack on the city’s cultural life.
Deller was winner of the Turner Prize in 2004 for his installation Memory Bucket (2003) a documentary about Crawford, Texas the hometown of George W Bush, and the siege in nearby Waco.
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