Art and Agency

Abstract

This chapter places the practices of Kurdish visual artists working in Iraqi Kurdistan within the historical context of the Iraqi state and discusses the production of artwork, particularly the creation of the Museum of Modern Art and the Sulemani International Film Festival, as they demonstrate the transitional nature of power and the struggle for cultural dominance within Iraqi Kurdish society. Once the sole or major patron of most artwork produced in Iraqi Kurdistan, the government is no longer funding most projects. The loss of this major patron has significantly changed the relationship between government (patron) and artist (client) creating opportunities for artists to develop alternative sources of support. The work of these artists reveals the struggle of a nation to transform historical relationships of power and to develop a sustainable civil society and a long-term, sustainable peace.