John Pilger launches Bushwhacked

The exhibition is titled Bushwhacked, but John Pilger, who opened it on Wednesday night, warned against considering it in the past tense.

"I would put in parentheses 'Obamawhacked'," the renowned writer and documentarian said, observing that the new president of the United States had already repudiated his campaign promises.

"We've gone from Howardwhacked to Ruddwhacked," he added.

Pilger was speaking at the Ivan Dougherty Gallery at the College of Fine Arts, which is exhibiting seven artists from Australia, USA, Pakistan and the UK.

Curated by Adrian Davies, the show examines the legacy of the George W Bush years through photography, moving image, sound and works on paper.

Sydney photographer Stephen Dupont contributes three photos from war-torn Afghanistan, while local mash-up artist Waxaudio offers sound files including John Lennon's 'Happy Christmas (War Is Over)' with the lyrics spoken by George W Bush.

Pakistan-born Abdullah Syed makes works from US dollar bills, including an exquisite flying carpet of greenbacks that is suspended above gallery-goers' heads.

American poster artist Robbie Conal has 13 posters in the show with titles ranging from 'Secretary of Offense (Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney)' to 'Emission Accomplished'.

The Guerrilla Girls from New York City contribute a feminist take on the US Homeland Security Alert System (the terror alert is "high" when the "president declares abstinence his favourite form of birth control").

In opening the show Pilger emphasised the role of art in saying what the media did not.

"Art is like truth. Art, especially, is subversive," he said.

"Shows like this are rare and they shouldn't be rare."

Bushwhackedshows at the Ivan Dougherty Gallery, COFA until 28 Mar.

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