Exhibition at Canadian War Museum examines impact of conflict on women

Ottawa, Ontario, February 7, 2013 — Their names are Olja, Mariatu, Dzidza, Amanda, Efrat, Nasrin, Qualam, Sarah, Shinaz, Zakiya, and Mah-Bibi. Their stories are captured in Eleven Women Facing War, the latest exhibition at the Canadian War Museum. This exhibition, a series of photographs and powerful first-person accounts captured by celebrated photojournalist Nick Danziger, will be presented from February 8 to April 21, 2013.

“Eleven Women Facing War is a revealing look at 11 individuals facing overwhelming circumstances,” said James Whitham, Director General of the Canadian War Museum. “Their words and pictures document universal truths about human conflict and the toll it takes. They speak for countless people in conflict zones around the world.”

In 2001, while working for the International Committee of the Red Cross, Danziger travelled to Afghanistan, the Balkans, Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Sierra Leone, and Colombia to document the stories of 11 women and girls affected by war. All had survived violence and profound loss; their accounts revealed vulnerability, and a remarkable will to survive. Their futures were uncertain, and the traumas of war were still fresh.

What became of these 11 women? From 2008 to 2011, Danziger set out to find each of the women, to learn how their lives had changed, ten years after their first encounter. Incredibly, Danziger found all but one of the women. They all provided him with updates about their lives and their continuing struggles.

Mariatu Kamara, one of the women featured in the exhibition is now living in Toronto. A child victim of the civil war in Sierra Leone, Kamara is now UNICEF Canada’s Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict. In recognition of International Women’s Day on March 7, the Canadian War Museum will host Kamara for a special evening public program.

Eleven Women Facing War is presented at the Canadian War Museum from February 8 until April 21, 2013 in the Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae Gallery.

An exhibition of photographs by Nick Danziger for the International Committee of the Red Cross, presented by the Canadian War Museum.

The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Its mission is to promote public understanding of Canada’s military history in its personal, national, and international dimensions.

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