The OPB program, State of Wonder, recently aired an interview with artist Wafaa Bilal, whose current exhibit, “I Don’t Know Their Names,” is featured at the Linfield Gallery.
Listen to the full interview.
Bilal painted the names of 100,000 Iraqi civilians who have died in the war efforts on the walls of the Linfield Gallery. Their names are painted in glossy white paint on top of white walls. “I Don’t Know Their Names” addresses a common refrain in conflicts − that as casualties escalate, the personal stories of each tragedy are lost in the dehumanizing scale of modern warfare. Faces and stories denigrate to names; names denigrate to numbers. War memorials often name the soldiers whose lives are lost in combat, but rarely is equal attention given to the civilians of conflict. The exhibit responds to questions, such as what are the names behind the numbers? And who were they?
The exhibit is free and open to the public, and will be on display through May 10. Learn more about the exhibit and artist.
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