Crossing the Farther Shore Essay Example

Introduction

Crossing the farther shore is artwork from a Vietnamese- American artist that incorporates hundreds of photographs that were taken by different families in southern Vietnam before and during the Vietnam war era. The artwork was done by Dinh Q. Le who was born in 1968 in Ha Tien. Le fled Southern Vietnam during the war era and on his return in 1996 he started collecting photos in antique stores and second-hand shops with the hope of finding his family photos. It is then that he began the journey to his artwork which has remained one of the most significant artworks that depict the lifestyle, culture and day to day lives of the Vietnamese before and during the war.

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Formal Analysis

Description. The artwork comprises of several rectangular photographs of different families repeatedly stitched together to come up with unique artwork. The repetition principle of art is thus depicted to ensure unity is created within the work of art.

Analysis

From the artwork, it can be analyzed that the stitched photos are in black and white colors, this brings in the art element of color. The stitched photographs are either in rectangular or cubic shapes. Again this brings the element of shape as far as the artwork and design is concerned.

Interpretation

The photographs were repeatedly stitched together with some facing outwards and the others facing inwards. As a result, an enclosure alluded to mosquito net is created. The mosquito net like enclosures that were created symbolized the ones the Vietnamese used to sleep in during the war era.

Evaluation

The artwork eliminates the element of variety by using photographs of different colors. As a result, the viewers' attention is held and the eyes guided through the work of art. As a result, the viewer's concentration becomes higher, and thus the objective of the artwork is achieved.

Research Insight

Le's artwork emulates a unique style and context; he stitched the vintage black and white photographs together in a design that some photographs phase inside while the others face outside. The content of the photographs emulates a contrary view of the southern Vietnamese that they were poor and illiterate. The photographs show the day to lives of the Vietnamese. On the back of the pictures are notations that were made by the original owners stating information on the people on them, le also added some text and essential information he retrieved from different sources among them an interview conducted by the Vietnamese-American historical project.

The photographs that le used to make his artwork represented a significant representation of the Vietnamese culture. Some pictures depicted how they dressed, what they ate, weddings and vacations. The stitched together photographs are a symbol of woven mosquito nets over invisible beds. Sleeping in the mosquito nets is a common culture in Vietnam due to its hot and steamy nights.

Le's artwork serves as a significant historical record culture of the southern Vietnamese before and during the war era. Books and music were burned by the communists to erase historical information during the war. The artwork gives a picture of the Southerners' lifestyle and how Southern Vietnam used to be regardless of the contradicting information about their lifestyle.

Conclusion

The artwork plays a significant role in keeping the historical records of the southern Vietnamese. Through the artwork, some of the past injustices are revealed. Through the artwork, the Vietnamese Americans who were not borne at the time of the war can emulate their culture and origin.

Works Cited

Ellyn ,Kail. "Feature Shoot." Long Lost Images from the Vietnam War Made into Powerful Installation, 10 June 2014, https://www.featureshoot.com/2014/06/long-lost-images-from-the-vietnam-war-made-into-powerful-installation/ Accessed 25 October 2018

Ellyn, Ruddick, and Molly, Gllenzer. "Rice Gallery." Crossing the Farther Shore, 28 August 2014, http://www.ricegallery.org/dinh-q-le/ Accessed 25 October 2018.

Molly, Glentzer. "Houston Chronicle." Narrative of Vietnam Finds Voice in Photos, 18 April 2014, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/entertainment/arts-theater/article/Narrative-of-Vietnam-finds-voice-in-photos-5413665.php. Accessed 25 October 2018

Roth, Moira. "Of Travelling with Dinh Q. Le, 1999-2014." Asian Diasporic Visual Cultures and the Americas 1.1-2 (2015): 155-168.

Taylor, Nora A. "Re-authoring images of the Vietnam War: Dinh Q Le's "Light and Belief" installation at dOCUMENTA (13) and the role of the artist as historian." South East Asia Research 25.1 (2017): 47-61.