Arts & Picks
On the DL

August September 31 - September, 2006

"Clean Up America"

Runs Sept. 1-30, reception Fri., Sept. 15, 5:30-8 p.m., free, Crane Arts Building, 1400 N. American St., 215-592-1310, www.cranearts.com

As an artist, Daniel Heyman draws what he feels. But he recently got the opportunity to draw what he saw—the faces of Iraqis tortured during detainment in Abu Ghraib Prison.

In March, Heyman accompanied lawyer Susan Burke to Jordan to meet 12 Iraqis who were victimized during the 2004 scandal. (She's representing them in a civil rights case.) Heyman etched their images into copper plates during sessions and wrote down snippets of testimony. These pieces served as the impetus for "Clean Up America," an exhibit that casts a stone-serious eye on a controversy that has played a major role in tarnishing America's international reputation.

Heyman sees the exhibit as an opportunity to encourage dialogue around an issue that many Americans consider a mere footnote in our sordid wartime compendium. "I wasn't just reacting to data," he says. "I actually got to interview people that our soldiers had tortured. It was incredibly different than just seeing pictures."

In addition to creating installations, Heyman sculpted Satar Jabar, the prisoner who was photographed standing on a box in a hood and cape. He chose soap as the medium. "It's a perfect metaphor," says Heyman. "There is no way for Americans to clean themselves of this."

—Drew Lazor