Veronique Saunier's "Still Lives" Collection
Owning Institution: UC Irvine, Libraries, Southeast Asian Archive
About this Collection
"Still Lives," an exhibit of 70 paintings and drawings by 18 Vietnamese, explores the trials and slim joys of daily life in Hong Kong's detention camps, where boat people await word whether they will be given asylum or be forcibly returned to Vietnam. The show came together thanks largely to the efforts of Veronique Saunier, a French public relations consultant who spends time as a volunteer working in the refugee camps. The result is a hauntingly eloquent vision of life in the camps. A scene of people lining up for their daily rations was painted by a law student, Tran Van Hung. The scene used for the exhibition's poster was painted by Hoang Quoc Bien. In it, a young boy stands on an upended garbage can, straining to talk to a girl on the other side of a barbed wire fence -- the Statue of Liberty watches over the lovers' meeting. View collection guide.View our statement on digital primary resources and historical description.
Filters you've selected: