BINH DANH COLLECTS photographs and other remnants of the American-Vietnam War and reprocesses and represents them in ways that bring new light to a complicated, multivalent history. While Danh left Vietnam with his family at a young age, return trips to the country have profoundly influenced the development of his work.
Collecting Memories features daguerreotypes, daguerreotype books, color photographs, tables displaying historic artifacts, and an installation of chlorophyll prints, which examine the different ways Danh investigates history and memory. Danh illustrates his interest in contemporary and historical photography forms by presenting us with a series of daguerreotypes, a photographic process dating back to the 19th century.
Danh combines found images from the American-Vietnam War with photographs he took on recent visits to Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The juxtaposition of the past and present illustrates Danh’s belief that history is alive in the present landscape. By confronting the aftermath of war, Danh creates an opportunity to examine history through enduring memories. – Mills College Art Museum, 2010
