As of today...

Place Asia: Afghanistan
Accession Number ART96049
Collection type Art
Measurement 46 items, 10 x 25 x 26 cm each
Object type Sculpture
Physical description marble
Maker Seton, Alexander
Place made Australia: New South Wales, Sydney, Australia: New South Wales, Sydney
Date made 2011-2022
Conflict Afghanistan, 2001-2021
Copyright

Item copyright: AWM Licensed copyright
Description

Alex Seton's 'As of today …' series forms a sculptural monument which commemorates the Australian soldiers who have lost their lives as a result of service in Afghanistan.

The work stems from the artist’s interest in flags, and highlights the manner in which they operate as symbols of community and shared national aspirations. 'As of today …' focuses on the motif of the ceremonial flag that is often draped over the casket in a military funeral service before being presented to the family of each fallen soldier.

As an act of dedication to these men, Seton has created marble versions of a folded flag, with a halyard tied around its centre. Each flag is sculpted in Australian marble and represents a specific individual and a life lost. Much of the power of the sculpted flags resides in the way their pale marble form, slightly pink in hue, evokes the flesh of a human body. The name of an individual soldier has been carved into the underside of each.

Seton’s intention with the work is to communicate the scale of loss in Afghanistan and, by concealing the soldiers’ names, highlight the impossibility of fully comprehending the individual experience of war.


Share this page

Related information

Conflicts

Places

Subjects

Related Objects