SARASOTA, FLA.- This fall The Ringling offers a timely examination of photography and video art created in response to the conflicts and uprisings that have erupted in the Middle East in the last 15 years. Aftermath: The Fallout of War—America and the Middle East, on view at The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art from Oct. 15, 2017 through Jan. 21, 2018, presents 90 photographs and two videos that raise important questions, provoke compassion and inspire reflection. Active in the US and Middle East, the 12 artists in the exhibition depict the conditions and people caught in the aftermath of war in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Israel and the U.S.

The international artists included in Aftermath are Lynsey Addario, Jananne Al-Ani, Stephen Dupont, Jennifer Karady, Gloriann Liu, Ben Lowy, Rania Matar, Eman Mohammed, Simon Norfolk, Farah Nosh, Suzanne Opton and Michal Rovner.

“The Ringling looks forward to sharing this revelatory and relevant exhibition, which provides a crucial interpretive lens through which to view the current repercussions of armed violence,” said Steven High, executive director of The Ringling. “Throughout history, artists have provided compelling images of war and its impact on humanity, and these visionary works of art document and comment on the societal cost of combat.”

Through a variety of approaches and traditions, from reportage to contemporary art practice, the artists depict civilians dealing with the immediate fallout of these conflicts, as well as war veterans trying to cope with their reintegration into civilian life. Some of the most recent work on view includes representations of the ongoing refugee crisis. The exhibition focuses on a select group of work by each artist, allowing for a thoughtful consideration of their visual choices and broader concerns.

Organized by Carol McCusker, curator of photography at the University of Florida’s Harn Museum of Art, the exhibition is overseen at The Ringling by Christopher Jones, associate curator of photography and new media.

“These incredibly powerful and haunting images, which have not been seen in the broader media, will resonate with audiences looking for a more profound understanding of what is taking place halfway around the world and the experiences of our veterans abroad and back in their own neighborhoods,” said Jones.

Aftermath is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue with contributions from McCusker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dexter Filkins, and poets Lisa Suhair Majaj and Kirun Kapur, among many others.