The invasion of Iraq by the US led coalition forces began in March 2003. On April 9th 2004 one of the most memorable images of the war was seen around the world on television and in newspapers. This was of the bringing down of the huge bronze statue of Saddam Hussein in Fardus Square. Photographs showed Iraqi people jumping on the fallen statue and rejoicing. In much of the western media it was regarded as an iconic image that represented the moment of liberation for the Iraqi people.

However since then, there has been some controversy over these images. The issue being that many of those that were seen in the press were cropped photographs or close-up film sequences which appeared to show large crowds of Iraqi people gathered around the sculpture helping to tear it down. Some argue that it was a staged event by the US ready for the cameras and that the numbers of people actually in the square were not more than a few hundred.

Saira Wasim has taken this iconic press image and used it to explore and convey her own thoughts on the invasion of Iraq. As the dark bronze statue of Saddam is toppled it is replaced by a white marble sculpture of George Bush in the form of the Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar. At the foot of the plinth a group of Muslim leaders lie slumped in a heap, eyes closed, fast asleep. They are from left to right: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei of Iran holding a shield, leaning against a barrel of oil is King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan is shown resting against a missile (representing Pakistan’s nuclear weapons programme). Yasser Arafat of Palestine is leaning against the centre of the plinth holding a bolster, to his right, holding a bag of jewels is King Abdullah II of Jordon and to his left is Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.

These Muslim leaders are painted wearing the ruffles and gloves of a clown. Also in the painting is a large clown figure seated against the plinth and a clown marionette being held by George Bush. This is a recurring motif in Wasim’s work and refers to the ‘media circus’ that surrounds contemporary politics. In this painting Wasim reflects on the Muslim territories being invaded by the USA, one after another, and the weakness of Muslim leaders, here represented as sleeping puppets in the hands of America.