"Moving Walls 10" Photography Exhibit at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, December 4 to January 21
Reception & Discussion
Where: Commons Mezzanine Gallery
University Maryland, Baltimore County
1000 Hilltop Circle
Catonsville
When: Monday, December 4, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m.
Editor’s Note: Images of photographs available
BALTIMORE—The Commons Mezzanine Gallery at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County will host Moving Walls 10, a traveling photography exhibit sponsored by the Open Society Institute-Baltimore, from Dec. 4 to Jan.21.
The exhibition, entitled Purple Hearts, features the work of New York photographer Nina Berman, whose powerful photographs show the human cost of war on an intimate scale. Berman’s portraits of American soldiers injured in Iraq offer a glimpse into the soldiers’ lives as they struggle to adjust at home. “The image of a wounded American soldier is one piece of evidence that the American public can examine to begin separating propaganda—that war is quick and bloodless—from truth,” said Berman, a photographer of 15 years whose work has appeared in magazines such as Time, Harper’s and National Geographic and her 2004 book, Purple Hearts.
The exhibit examines the physical scars of war, including soldiers’ severe burns and missing limbs, while also highlighting the emotional and psychological scars soldiers endure. Through excerpts from interviews accompanying the photographs, Berman captures the wounded soldiers’ thoughts on serving their country, foregoing goals and seeking hope.
As part of Moving Walls 10, the Open Society Institute-Baltimore is sponsoring a Reception and Discussion on Monday, Dec. 4, from 5 to 6:30 p.m.
Artists for Social Change, a UMBC student group, will lead a conversation about the photographs. Gallery hours are from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., Monday through Friday. The event is free and open to the public.
Many of the soldiers in the photographs either express support for the war in Iraq or say they were just doing their jobs. One soldier, however, is openly critical. Robert Acosta, 20, had his right hand blown off and his left leg mangled in a grenade attack. Accompanying a photo of Acosta, who has a prosthetic arm, are his words: “I mean like all the reasons we went to war, it just seems like they're not legit enough for people to lose their lives for, and for me to lose my hand and use of my leg, and for my buddies to lose their limbs.” Acosta agreed to be photographed because he wanted to show the public the cost of war, Berman said.
The photographs, she added, are “only a partial accounting of the true cost.”
Moving Walls is an ongoing series of photography exhibitions addressing social justice issues. The Open Society Institute curates and organizes these traveling shows to enlighten and engage, challenge and inspire. Moving Walls is coordinated by Art on Purpose, an organization that provides art workshops, exhibitions, and programs in support of education, social justice and community service.
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Founded by philanthropist George Soros, OSI-Baltimore is a private operating foundation that supports a grantmaking, educational, and capacity-building program to expand justice and opportunity for Baltimore residents. With support from a range of investors, its current work focuses on helping Baltimore's youth succeed, reducing the social and economic costs of incarceration, tackling drug addiction, and building a corps of Community Fellows to bring innovative ideas to Baltimore's underserved communities.