SALAM
Iraq – a war-torn country that struggles to become a nation, with trenches between the three major ethnic groups being so deep and reinforced, that unity seems a distant dream.
Being of strategically interest to external powers for centuries, it’s recent history since Saddam Hussein gained power in 1979 was defined by internal suppression, purges and atrocities as well as invasions into neighbouring Iran and Kuwait – resulting in hundreds of thousands of casualties.
But after early hopes for a positive change when Saddam Hussein’s regime was brought to an end, the country descended into a period of intense sectarian violence between Shia, Sunni and Kurdish communities with growing numbers of casualties and severe humanitarian, social, and economic consequences.
The former Iraqi Embassy in Berlin – abandoned during the war in 1991 and falling into ruin ever since – might be seen as a metaphor for this turbulent past and the mosaic cullet of it’s destroyed stairway with it’s three different colours may stand as a mirror of a promising future home for Shia, Sunni and Kurds.
Dimensions: 190 x 200 cm
Material: mosaic tiles, mortar
Year: 2016
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