Exhibition at the Art Museum
War is a phenomenon that has been taking place on Earth from early times of primitive societies till the twenty-first century. Weapon and different battle equipment is getting modern and improved, so that warriors could have more ways to protect themselves in the battles and hit the target from the side of the opponent. However, it is weird to think about the development of weapon, for example, guns, pistols, bombs and tanks, taking into account that the primary aim of weapons is to win, killing people. I have been always wondering why humanity works in the direction of self-destruction. Majority of people who live in peaceful countries cannot imagine and do not want to imagine what real war is like because it simply scares them. It is easier to live their own lives, caring about children, grandchildren, working or studying, chatting with friends without getting any idea that in some country people are dying right at this moment. That is why I think that everybody should be informed about reasons, process and consequences of war, and art is one of the comprehensible ways to say a loud word about war.
The exhibition I visited is Steve Mumford’s War Journals (2003–2013) and is organized by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville. Steve Mumford is an artist who had visited the places of “trouble spots” during ten last years and created his own story of wars he saw. The places like Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait are often mentioned in hot news, but it is possible to suppose that mass media provides a wrong interpretation of events, whereas an artist who was immediately there, gives pictures of real war life.
As well as almost all visitors, I asked myself why he has spent time for drawings and watercolors if he could just take impressive photographs. After that, I found an explanation from the guide and also from some exhibition booklets. Mr Mumford said that he is an artist who makes drawings to present a personal absorption and interpretation of events, not just to fix the moment with a camera. To be precise, he explained: “...if photojournalism captures a decisive moment, making a drawing is more about lingering in a place and editing the scene in a wholly subjective way. It’s never comprehensive of the visual facts, which are filtered through one’s senses, selected, exaggerated, or left out over the hour or so it takes to make a drawing... .For me, the act of drawing slowed down the war, recording the spaces in between the bombs”.
The scenes Mumford portrayed are not ones with which most Americans are familiar. They do not represent general important ideas that can be understood by everyone in the same way. Mumford has put his personal view of tragic things into drawings, not trying to analyze or demonstrate the global image of war. He concentrated his attention on the time between combats; combats themselves were not lasting. These “waiting-for-combat-periods” are more decisive than shooting because they show how people aspire to live, how they continue to fight for life even after traumas. Mumford catched the spirit of people that cannot be destroyed by enemies.
One of the most inspiring drawings tells us a story about the Staff Sergeant John Jones, 1/7 Marines, Charlie Co, a double amputee, who performs physical therapy at Brooke Army Medical Center. First of all, I want to call this drawing an implementation of human efforts spent on war. The Staff Sergeant lays on the bed and makes a special exercise for his body. Though he does not have two legs, Mumford draws him as a strong personality who will not be down in the mouth. Besides, we can see the simple conditions that militants lived in. It can be a good lesson for everybody who complains about their problems, being absolutely healthy. The drawing is created with ink, watercolor and gouache on paper that is not typical for such pieces of art.
Another drawing that impressed me is dedicated to Captain Calvin Allen, from the First Armored Division who receives therapy to his wounded hand at Walter Reed Army in the Medical Center. There are two people on the picture – military nurse and Captain Allen. I guess she puts some medicine to reduce his pain, and it is a usual process for military zone. However, this drawing amazed me with the looks on people’s faces. Mumford made it so meaningful, presenting the nurse absolutely concentrated on the work and giving all her care to the patient, whereas Captain’s face expresses sadness, yearning and a bit of frustration. Comparing to the previous picture, this one shows that the war can wobble human firmness.
The last but not least drawing is of an 18-month-old Iraqi boy who inhaled chlorine gas after an insurgent gas attack. The comment for this piece of art also informed that two children died at the hospital. Mumford draws it in gray colors, and I think it is not a coincidence, because it means that a little human being that is not guilty had to suffer from “adult games”. It made me extremely sad because I realized that the war touches upon not only the lives of militants and their families but also those who are not accessorial to war process at all.
This exhibition is truly thought-provoking, and I wish everyone could attend it and open new senses and understandings. Steve Mumford did an amazing work to portray the terrible reality of war. Such exhibitions make me think how grateful I should be that I live in a place where armed conflicts do not occur. The article was composed and published by professional writer Eshley Durst, more her papers at https://cheap-papers.com/hire-literature-review-writer.php
