Exploring the Shadows

Abstract

This project was part of the University of Michigan's Michigan Library Scholars internship program in the summer of 2023. The students working on this project helped curate an exhibition centered around a selection of photographs and artist statements from the Shadow and Light project — an initiative memorializing Iraqi academics assassinated between 2003-2013, a timeframe which roughly parallels the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq. The exhibition invites solidarity with the academics targeted, but also deeper connection with their experiences and the richness of Iraqi academic life through their written legacies and the testimonies of surviving academics, many of whom were driven into exile. The students also curated a companion online exhibit, Tracing Iraqi Artists: From Shadow to Light, exploring modern Iraqi struggle and resistance through contemporary visual art and connection to Iraqi artists and educators.