About this artwork
In 1975, at the end of the Vietnam War, a teenage An–My Lê was removed from Vietnam by the American military. That experience, coupled with living as a refugee in the United States, formed the basis for her long–term exploration of the American military. Lê spent roughly one decade photographing U.S. Navy noncombat missions in over 20 countries including Ghana, Indonesia, and Panama. Here, a semiautomatic weapon symbolizes the security that coalition forces provided between 2004 and 2009 to a key Iraqi oil terminal on the coast of the Persian Gulf, which had suffered repeated attacks over the previous 30 years. Lê situated the paraphernalia of military conflict within an idyllic vista, layering the geopolitical landscape onto the natural one.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Photography and Media
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Artist
- An-My Lê
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Title
- M-246 Semi Automatic Weapon, Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal, Iraq
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Place
- Vietnam (Artist's nationality:)
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Date
- Made 2007
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Medium
- Inkjet print
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Dimensions
- Image, sight: 101.6 × 143.5 cm (40 × 56 1/2 in.); Frame: 104 × 145.7 × 4 cm (41 × 57 3/8 × 1 5/8 in.)
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Credit Line
- Photography and Media Purchase Fund
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Reference Number
- 2010.290
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Copyright
- © 2007 An-My Lê.
Extended information about this artwork
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