Revisiting Iraqi Cultural Heritage from “Outside” in Times of Looting and Destruction: Al-Mutanabi Street in Motion

How can we think heritage in a society characterised by the destruction and dispersion of its material and immaterial cultural heritage? In March 2007, a bomb exploded in Al-Mutanabi Street, the historic centre of Baghdad bookselling area. Four years after the looting of Baghdad museums, this deadly event embodied destroyed cultural life in the Iraqi capital. Iraqi artists in exile quickly reacted from outside, reviving through their creations the atmosphere of the lost city. Between tribute and testament, their work questions heritage in the (un-) making, through a set of transnational practices. Drawing on interviews conducted with Iraqi artists in exile and on analyses of work related to Al-Mutanabi Street, this paper highlights the simultaneous processes of abstraction and rematerialisation of heritage practices, challenging the idea of heritage as a mark of authenticity.