Heads, 2012, historic post stamps from Iraq

The poster piece Heads (2012) shows enlarged portraits of Iraqi leaders 1921-1979 taken from historic post stamps. Already before the three Gulf Wars Iraq was dominated by political unrest and change in leadership. After World War I. the British Empire appointed the Hashemite monarchy that was overthrown 40 years later through a military coup, followed by internal fighting for power and the socialist Ba´ath Party gaining control in 1968. The stamps´ designs reflect these two main phases – the monarchs´ portraits echo a European concept of royalty, whereas the following revolutionary rulers are depicted in militaristic poses surrounded by national symbols.

Heads, 2012, display box installation

The timeline of Heads is picked up in Tails (2012), a series of display boxes containing coins, pins, medals and other memorabilia mainly from the time of the three Gulf wars 1980-2003. The topic of territory and appropriation is predominant in Tails with motives of maps, palm trees and lamassus reappearing in objects from the USA, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Iraq.

Detail Tails: British postcard from WWI, Turkish Captured Shells, Mesopotamia

Details Tails:
250 fils coin (1980)
Iraqi honorary medal (1983)
US lapel pin, Operation Desert Storm (1991)
US lapel pin, Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003)
Lapel pin, Multi National Forces Iraq (2004)