The Command Post - Iraq - Fantasy world

April 18, 2003

Fantasy world

BBC: Pictures found in one of Saddam's hideaways.

Posted By Gabriel Syme (Samizdata) at April 18, 2003 07:28 AM | TrackBack

Comment Policy and Decency Standards
: The comments here serve as an open forum in which you are encouraged to debate, discuss and post relevant links. It is Command Post policy that we will not tolerate any racial or ethnic slurs or obvious attempts to bait other guests of this site into a battle. We provide you the space here to discuss the topic at hand and to engage in lively discourse. Please remember that your IP is logged every time you leave a comment and the editors of Command Post reserve the right to terminate you ability to comment here if you do not conform to our commenting policy. Thank you.

Classy.

Posted by: Joshua Martin at April 18, 2003 08:20 AM

Beautiful cover art from second-rate sci fi paperbacks.

Posted by: Jaro at April 18, 2003 08:27 AM

Are those paintings on velvet?

Interesting. None of those snakes in the paintings appear to be Arab.

Posted by: SSRIuser at April 18, 2003 08:57 AM

More bodice-rippers than science fiction/fantasy.

I want to know where the poker-playings dogs are.

Posted by: aelfheld at April 18, 2003 09:39 AM

"Beautiful cover art from second-rate sci fi paperbacks."

Not really, unless book design standards have slipped even more drastically than usual. What these appear to be are rather crude, probably locally-produced , copies of second rate paperback art. (I believe I saw some knock off Vallejo copy on the wall of that "love nest" featured recently). This is below paperback illustration standards - it's below van art. Some idiot took a pile of old magazines and books, turned on the opaque projector, got out his acrylic house paints and proceeded to paint-by-numbers the glorious leader's "art" collection. "Wonderful!" said Saddam "The colors are so bright and dynamic! Now, I desire to posess copies of those beautiful portraits of the sad, sad children with the huge eyes. Please get started on six or seven dozen of those right away!"

You can get better looking paintings at Goodwill. Why someone who plainly had all the money he needed to buy any amount of real commercial kitch paintings would instead go for amateur kitch is beyond me. I'm sure he thought they were really some profound meaningful works of art, though. Thugs and tyrants often indulge in cheap sentimentality and "sensitive" self pity - possibly Saddam thought that Picture #6 was all about his inner self - a lonely figure in a coldhearted world that doesn't understand him and persecutes him just because now and then he's regretfully forced to shove people into plastic shredders or spray mustard gas on a few thousand villagers.

Posted by: John Sabotta at April 18, 2003 09:46 AM

These would look better on a fraternity room wall, after smoking a couple of bongs!

Posted by: capsu78 at April 18, 2003 12:04 PM

Hey, capsu78:

Quit smoking them bongs, boy (girl?). The toxic fumes from the plastic are gonna kill you, man. Instead, try some dope in one sometime. q;^)

Otherwise, I agree with you.

Posted by: SSRIuser at April 18, 2003 03:18 PM

Why, that sorry sumbich! One of those paintings was a copy of the cover of Jo Clayton's The Snares Of Ibex, a novel of the Diadem.

How much you wanna bet Saddam violated copyright? Bet Segrelles didn't get paid.

Wait a minute. “Second-rate paperbacks’?

Posted by: jrm at April 18, 2003 10:21 PM