This Year's Nobel Peace Prize exhibition is about sexual violence as a weapon of war. (Photo: (c) Cristina de Middel / Magnus Photos for the Nobel Peace Center)

Dec 03, 2018 09:13 CET Nobel Peace Prize Exhibition 2018: The Body as a Battlefield

In this year’s Nobel Peace Prize Exhibition, the Nobel Peace Center makes use of art photography to illustrate the topic of sexual violence in war.The brutality of the violence makes it hard to convey through the documentary genre.

This year’s Nobel Peace Prize Exhibition, "The Body as a Battlefield" is about the two Nobel Peace Prize laureatesDr Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad. It is also about how sexual violence has been, and still is, used worldwide as a weapon of war and what can be done to prevent such crimes.

The exhibition, which the Nobel Peace Center stages each year to honour the new Peace Prize laureates, is always opened the day after they have received their awards in Oslo City Hall. When Dr Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad come to the Nobel Peace Center to officially open the exhibition on 11 December, they will see how this year’s photographer, Cristina de Middel, uses conceptual art photography to illustrate the heinous crimes that they have both worked so tirelessly to halt. Tiny toy soldiers on a naked body; a papaya with a machetedriven clean through its core.

“I wanted to make representations of the sexual violence that has been inflicted on people all over the world, both in the past and the present. The violence itself is in many cases so overwhelming that it’s hard to convey sufficiently through the documentary genre. I hope the abstractions in these photos will help the viewer have an empathetic realisation within themselves about the victims’ experiences,” explains Cristina de Middel. A Magnum Photo nominee, the Spanish photographer spent time with both Peace Prize laureates in November 2018. Mukwege was photographed in the hospital he runs in DR Congo, along with some of the thousands of women he has treated. Nadia was photographed in Paris, between meetings with government officials and world leaders.

Visitors to this year’s Peace Prize Exhibition will also have the opportunity to become involved in the struggle to end the use of sexual violence in war. Inside the exhibition, visitors can show their support to the victims by urging Norway’s Director of Public Prosecutions to bring the perpetrators of such crimes to justice.

“Sexual violence is a crime in Norway. The Norwegian authorities therefore have the legal framework and enforcement mechanisms needed to make an active and tangible contribution to the eradication of sexual violence by holding perpetrators to account and prosecuting those who commit such crimes,” says the Nobel Peace Center’s executive director, Liv Tørres. “We owe it to the survivors – and prosecution will send a clear signal that should deter other would-be aggressors.”

The Body as a Battlefieldexhibition has been produced in collaboration with Norad and with support from the City of Oslo. It will be officially opened by this year’s Nobel Peace Prize laureates at 4.45 pm on 11 December. NB! Invited members of the press only.

Press preview on Sunday, 9 December from 2.30 pm to 4.30 pm. The photographer will be present and available for interviews.

The exhibition will be open to the general public from 12 noon on 12 December.

Facts about the Nobel Peace Center

• one of Norway's most visited museums with app 250 000 vistors per year • presents the Nobel Peace Prize laureates and their work, in addition to telling the story of Alfred Nobel • is an arena for debate and reflection around topics such as war, peace and conflict resolution • is internationally recognized for its emphasis on documentary photography and interactive technology • presents changing exhibitions, engaging digital solutions, films, seminars and events • Olav Njølstad is chair of the board, Liv Tørres is the Executive Director • is financed by a combination of public and private funds • the main sponsors and collaborating partners are Hydro, Telenor Group and ABB

Contacts

Ingvill Bryn Rambøl Press Contact Head of Information Press Contact, web editor [email protected] +47 92 45 29 44 +47 48 30 10 00