A Civilian Combat Artist to See

This is an excellent video featuring a civilian combat artist, New York artist Steve Mumford, who has spent more than ten months in Iraq over the course of 5 trips, embedded with the US Army.

I've had a few email conversations with him in the past, and find him to be an artist who knows his combat art history as well as his combat art. I think he explains the role of the combat artist well in this clip.

You can find out more about him and his work on the web:

http://www.postmastersart.com/

http://www.artnet.com/magazine/features/baghdadjournal.asp

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1214/p14s02-alar.html

and:

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/PersonOfWeek/story?id=339980&page=1

It's good to see an artist truly dedicated to authentic art-making-- so much so that he will risk life and limb to go to a war zone to create that art. He is dedicated to telling the story truthfully, and with a fresh artistic style.

I think you'll find that his work-- especially the ink washes-- has an immediacy and freshness that is invigorating.

Carry on, Steve!