Art: Behind Basra - Essam al-Sudani's Photos from the City - Mirror

As British troops leave Basra, this exhibition by Iraqi photojournalist Essam al-Sudani looks at the daily life of ordinary Iraqis.

Through his lens al-Sudani, 29, captures a series of wonderfully composed images from a city that has been much in the news but little seen by the world at large - and which itself has seen traumatic but also hopeful changes over the past year.

This exhibition presents portraits of everyday life from a city that is now daring to look to the future with optimism.

Al-Sudani is from the southern Iraqi city of Basra. He has worked since 2004 for the French news agency Agence France Presse and this is his first European exhibition.

The exhibition is supported by the Department for International Development (DFID).

DFID was introduced to Essam's work when he attended a DFID funded Iraqi media training initiative to support a strong, free and independent media in Basra. The media training was part of a range of programmes that DFID has funded in Iraq to support reconstruction.

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