I call him “Fouad, my Iraqi friend”. The inspiration for this mosaic portrait was based on a painting I purchased in a downtown gallery in Baghdad. It hung next to another painting by the same artist, but it was the expressive face in this painting that captivated me. It was several months before I would allow myself to own it. I lived in Iraq many years ago, and still I remember the unique smell of the Baghdadi air. I remember Abbas, our caretaker and handyman and his wife, um-Sabah, who cooked lovely lunches for us. I remember Mekhdi, my favorite carpet merchant. I remember the trips to the souk and the endless cups of hot, sweet tea. I remember the smell of the freshly-baked pita bread and most of all I remember the generosity and kindness of the Iraqi people. I felt at home there, almost as if I had lived there in another life. I fell in love in Iraq, with the Middle East, its food and its people. I may have forgotten many of their names, but whenever I gaze at my painting, I remember it like it was yesterday. I remember it all.

He could have many names, but I call him “Fouad, my Iraqi friend.”