American Braised

Refugee, cotton fabric and embroidery thread, 10 x 13.25 inches, 2020

Refugee Camp Snow Globe (back), mixed media, 5 x 5 x 5 inches, 2021

Phuc Bui, cotton fabric and embroidery thread, 10 x 13.25 inches, 2020

Refugee Camp Snow Globe (front), mixed media, 5 x 5 x 5 inches, 2021

American G.I.'s Salute, mixed media sculpture, 3 x 32 x 10 inches, 2021

Bich, cotton fabric and embroidery thread, 10 x 13.25 inches, 2020

Phuoc, cotton fabric and embroidery thread, 10 x 13.25 inches, 2020

American Braised
Revisiting my childhood to include memories of the American War in Vietnam was central to the body of work that I made as a COLA (City of Los Angeles) master artist fellow. The artwork includes mixed media sculptures, snow globes, and cross-stitched images of unanglicized names.

The snow globes were based on the Fall of Saigon in 1975. In preparation for the expected evacuation at that time, the American Embassy distributed a 15-page booklet with a map that indicated the assembly areas where helicopters would be able to land to pick people up. An insert page read:
Note evacuation signal. Do not disclose to other personnel. When the evacuation is ordered, the code will be read on Armed Forces Radio. The code is: “The temperature in Saigon is 105 degrees and rising.” This will be followed by the playing of “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.”

Those who were not U.S. citizens but expected to participate in the evacuation, contacted Americans they knew and asked them to sing the tune. They feared they might not recognize it.