Word: dewachi
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...exhibit’s curator, Omar Al-Dewachi, says his interest was first sparked in the subject by the discovery of data sheets filled with physical descriptions of these Marsh Arabs. They drew him to explore Field’s publications, including the Anthropology of Iraq, which provide a context for the collection of Field’s photos donated to the Peabody...
...Dewachi makes a point of connecting such images to Field’s memoirs, giving them context as well as Field’s (a foreigner’s) impressions. Indeed, the images tell a story of a foreigner learning about this ancient culture...
Coming to America as an Iraqi native, Al-Dewachi was surprised at how the West romanticized the lifestyle of the Marsh Arabs as a sort of “primitive Venice.” “In Iraq, ‘Ma’dan’ was a cultural slur, implying ignorance, etc.” he says. “In medical school, the Marshlands were described as an area of disease, full of malaria...
However, Al-Dewachi is quick to point out, concern for the plight of the Ma’dan “comes and goes in news and in the consciousness of the people...
...Dewachi, who has not been back to his homeland since 1998, said he thought there was a “thirst in Iraq right now for exposure to the outside world.” “It’s a place that’s been decapitated from the international community,” he said...