To cover the war in Vietnam, The Associated Press gathered a group of extraordinary photojournalists in its Saigon bureau, creating one of the greatest photographic legacies of the 20th century. Forty years later, a collection of more than 50 gripping AP images will be on display in Vietnam to tell the human story behind the conflict.
The exhibit will open June 12 at The Exhibition Hall, 45 Trang Tien St., Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. It will feature images drawn from AP’s much-acclaimed photo history, “Vietnam: The Real War.”
From Malcolm Browne’s horrific photograph of an elderly Buddhist monk, voluntarily set ablaze during a protest against the South Vietnamese government, to Nick Ut’s famous picture of a 9-year-old girl running scorched and naked from a napalm attack, the selected images capture the drama and tragedy of people caught in war. Other AP photographers represented in the exhibit include Horst Faas and Henri Huet.
A few days before the exhibit opens, Ut will revisit the site near Trang Bang, outside of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), where he took his iconic photo on June 8, 1972. In addition, Ut will chronicle his journey back via AP Images’ Instagram account, providing an intimate view of what he saw and felt in those moments and his perspective more than 40 years later.
AP won six Pulitzer Prizes for its coverage in Vietnam, four of them for photography, including Ut’s award in 1973.
“Throughout our nearly 170-year history, AP has maintained a singular mission: To inform the world. Our journalists strive every day to report the unvarnished truth about global events with accuracy, objectivity and integrity,” said AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt. “AP’s coverage in those years played an important role in bringing the facts of the conflict to the American people. We are honored to be sharing our compelling photographic history with the people of Vietnam.”
The exhibit will run through June 26, 2015. Admission is free. Other exhibits drawn from “Vietnam: The Real War” were previously presented at the Steven Kasher Gallery in New York and the headquarters of the Guardian in London.
Contact
Erin Madigan White
Senior Media Relations Manager
The Associated Press
212-621-7005
[email protected]