Gallery/Museum Research

“Age of Terror” Art Exhibition

At the Imperial War Museum in London, the “Age of Terror” art exhibition is set up to run from 26 October 2017 to 28 May 2018. As one of the museum’s biggest art exhibition, it is expected that more than 40 international artists will feature their work. According to Lawless (2017), the theme of the exhibition is to showcase the global impact of the events of September 11, 2001. Some of the works that have been on display were created slightly after the 9/11 terror attack, while others have been created recently to showcase the impact of the terror attack on the modern society. One outstanding painting is the Circadian Rhyme 1 (2011) Finguries by Jitish Kallat, arranged in a row undergoing body search (Judah, 2017). The paintings show the effect of the terror as security officers are forced to perform body checks on individuals, a sight that is increasingly familiar in modern society and a reflection of surveillance and war on terror. The other painting that stood out is James Bridle’s Drone Shadow, from the section devoted to war weapons. The drone was used by the United States to kill for the first time in Afghanistan after the Twin Tower terror attack. According to Judah, the artist drew a shadow of the drone to elaborate its characteristic; the unseen combat weapon.

Personal reflection

After going through the works presented at the Imperial War Museum on Age of Terror, I feel that the exhibition is more focused on the state of affairs the world was and has been in after the 9/11 terror attack. Nonetheless, the exhibition fails to consider the way terrorism looks like in modern society. More specifically, artists should have displayed more paintings on concert bombings, suicide bombing, or the radicalization of young people into terror groups, especially in Islamic states.

References

Judah, H. (2017). Everyday Horrors: Art in the Age of Terror. The New York Times. Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/arts/design/art-age-of-terror-imperial-war-museum.html.

Lawless, J. (2017). London exhibition ‘Age of Terror’ explores art since 9/11. The Washington Post. Retrieved from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/london-exhibition-age-of-terror-explores-art-since-911/2017/10/25/736df678-b994-11e7-9b93-b97043e57a22_story.html?utm_term=.ac31bec090bc.