In those poisoned fields where the flowers of deceptive values flourish, people’s dreams rot and die smothered by the roots of political authority that wears the sacred crown of religion in order to enslave people. What happens in the shadows remains unseen. Truth dies to enable poisonous flowers to flourish.
Poisonous Meadow portrays the dark side of the extreme authority exercised by religious leaders, highlighting the politicization and abuse of religion found in Middle Eastern societies such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Iran. In an ironic way, the exhibition seems to push us to sense the concrete and internal moral decay at the core of religious thinking. The artist’s paintings represent the many ways in which religion destroys lives and distorts societies by curbing freedom.
Photo: Saddam Jumaily
Photo: Saddam Jumaily
This is so especially for women whose civil liberties and human rights are seen as a litmus test for a free society. Jumaily has long witnessed the deterioration of Middle Eastern societies weighed down by political religion and marked by the repression of women, resulting in their absence from public life. At this moment in his career, Jumaily’s paintings represent in part critical reflection and in part fearless audacity.
Bio
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Saddam Jumaily
IQ
Saddam Jumaily is an Iraqi artist. He holds an MFA in visual arts from Basra University, and is a painter, sculptor and researcher. His works combine a number of concepts related to immigration, tense social relations, racism and sexism in the Middle East. He also focuses on the impact of religious authority on the demolition of societies.
Credits
All artworks by Saddam Jumaily / Grant from The Finnish Cultural Foundation, Finland.
The presentation of the work is funded by State of the ART(ist), a collaboration between the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ars Electronica.
