Ashes to Art: The Iraqi Phoenix

"To art lovers, here's something for you:


NEW YORK -- Tattered book covers salvaged from the Iraqi Academy of Fine Arts and wax sketches of U.S. bombs blowing up Baghdad are going on exhibit in New York this month in a rare U.S. exhibition of Iraqi artists.

"Ashes to Art: The Iraqi Phoenix" reflects the turbulence in the nation since the March 2003 bombing of Baghdad.

This undated image supplied by the Pomegranate Gallery in New York shows a piece of art by Qasim Sabti which he made from book covers salvaged from the Iraqi Academy of Fine Arts after the U.S. bombing of Baghdad. The exhibit "Ashes to Art: The Iraqi Phoenix" will be on display at the Pomegranate Gallery from Jan. 19 through Feb. 22.

The flames referred to in the title were the reality of those closest to the attack, and nearly all the works include a charred element, said Peter Hastings Falk, curator of the show at SoHo's Pomegranate Gallery, running Jan. 19 to Feb. 22."
Iraqi in America