Abstract:

"Documents a remarkable touring art exhibit which showcases the work of both American and Vietnamese veterans of the Indochina War. Filmed in both countries, the documentary features the exhibition's paintings intercut with Vietnamese and American archival footage of the war, plus interviews with participating artists, historians, scholars, and veterans from both sides. Their thought-provoking comments further illuminate the many issues raised by the exhibit as an unprecedented international 'conversation' between former enemies about the nature and the power of art, the role that the arts play in chronicling and shaping both popular and historical interpretations of the Vietnam War, and the value of art in revealing cultural parallels and the universal trauma of war."