Art students remember Iraq fallen

The American public may be getting more comfortable with the war in Iraq after the perceived success of elections there, but a group of university students in New York has created a poignant reminder of the human costs of the conflict - a 200ft tableau of the faces of nearly all the US soldiers who have died.

The American public may be getting more comfortable with the war in Iraq after the perceived success of elections there, but a group of university students in New York has created a poignant reminder of the human costs of the conflict - a 200ft tableau of the faces of nearly all the US soldiers who have died.

The tableau, To Never Forget: Faces of the Fallen, displays faces of 1,483 of the dead Americans, depicted in water colours, pencil, oils, prints and computer design. That is just short of the full tally of 1,500 US fatalities - a total reached, coincidentally, this week as the exhibition went up.

"It's a powerful sight to take in," commented Stephen Zaima, a professor at the State University in Syracuse in upstate New York. "It's not about the war or politics. It's about these people who have given their lives. It's not about the artists or their styles." Each image, taken from internet or newspaper photographs, is 5 by 7 inches.

A New York Times/CBS News poll released on Thursday showed that 53 per cent of Americans believe efforts to stabilise Iraq are now going well - up from 41 per cent a month ago.