In response to he London bombings in July 2005 and other terrorist plots in the UK I created the series ‘The banality of evil’. While the British were in shock that terrorists, convicted and suspected, came from their communities and neighbourhoods I was taken by the public’s denial that these men and women are actually real or human. The Australian Government and public reaction to David Hicks and Dr Haneef stirred further discussion of such labeled ‘undesirables’ living amongst us.
Comments include:
“I could’ve passed him in the street or bumped into him in the local shops”
“I used to speak to Shehzad in the street, just to say Good morning and Good afternoon”
“He seemed a nice enough lad, just nice and normal”
“He seemed like a well educated polite young man”
“I simply cannot believe he could have been involved in a plot like this. He is religious and seemed to love his family”
“I think it is a case of mistaken identity. The last thing she’d be interested in is terrorism. They are just simple day-to-day people going about their own business.”
“Sawar is still listed on a dating website where he claims to be honest. His 26 year old brother was also arrested, They were typical boys growing up outside London, playing soccer and cricket, but recently became deeply religious.”
Apparent is a denial that terrorists behave like ordinary people and go about certain daily business perhaps like thy typical neighbour. They partake in mundane tasks; they work, study, shop, commute or reside amongst ‘normal’ members of society. My drawings represent the assimilated Terrorist living in a western society.
My work is also a comment on paranoia and the fear that the media has instilled in us . . . “If you see something say something”
Of course certain belief systems, actions and behaviours of Terrorists are not that of the general population, but they like celebrities and criminals are human at the end of the day. We seem to put them in another category.
“It makes you think, did I see something I should have reported to the police? Could I have done a bit more?” Perhaps they could make it a tad easier by going about their daily activities in a balaclava.
With continued and increased global terror threats, these works are still relevant today.
Works created between 2006 - 2008
Medium: Watercolour 21cm x 31cm
