PHILLIP JONES GRIFFITHS: 50 Years on the Frontlines
 
Count Image # Thumbnail Caption Date Box # Size (HxW) Note/Condition
1 LON66329 School children near Ho Chi Minh City during festivities to celebrate the end of the war. 1985 15 2 4'1/2"x 6'1/2"
2 NYC12443 Older soldiers often missed their families and so befriended children and dogs. The canines proved more congenial ? more dogs than wives were taken back to America. 1967 15 3 6'3"x 4'2"
WALL TEXT ONE PLACED HERE: Biography 7'1"x 5'1/2"
3 NYC48069 Hongai, just a few miles from the tourist destination of Halong Bay, is a major coal shipment point. This made it a target so US bombers obliterated the town during the war. 1994 2 4 24"36"
4 NYC48149 Vietnam still relies on manual labour for jobs that are mechanised elsewhere. So day labourers carry baskets of fine coal on their heads. 1998 2 5 24"x 36"
5 LON66365 American visitors to Vietnam are always surprised by the lack of animosity towards them. This salesman is demonstrating a dancing, smiling GI Joe complete with M16 rifle and hand grenade. 2002 13 6 4'8"x 3'6"
6 LON66345 This man runs a small factory in Ho Chi Minh City that fabricates helicopters and fighter planes from discarded soft drink cans, with the Coca Cola helicopter being his best seller. 1994 2 7 24"x 36"
7 LON66347 Father and son begging on the streets of Ha Noi. The gulf between rich and poor is on the rise in the new Vietnam. 1997 2 8 24"x 36"
8 LON66342 Vietnam?s first Jacuzzi, imported from America by an entrepreneur before the trade embargo was lifted. 1993 4 9 24"x 36"
9 LON66332 Scrap war material collected by countless scavengers all over the country ends up at the Vicasa Metal Works in Bien Hoa, where it is made into metal rods that are used for new building construction. 1987 4 10 24"x 36"
10 LON66357 This girl lives with her family on their boat moored on the Saigon River. To get to school, she punts herself to the bank standing on a piece of Styrofoam packing material. 2002 4 11 24"x 36"
11 LON66352 Foreign penetration can now be seen everywhere in Vietnam. This bus shelter in Ho Chi Minh City provides shelter from the sun and rain and a place for the weary to rest. 1999 12 12 24"x 36"
12 LON66358 A discarded CD is seen as a most glittering jewel in the eyes of poor children. 2002 4 13 24"x 36"
13 LON66341 In one of the back streets of Ho Chi Minh City, busts of the father of the nation, Uncle Ho, stand discarded. A local magazine polled young people to discover that they identified Bill Gates as their personal hero. 1993 6 14 24"x 36"
14 NYC47835 My Lai. The children of some of the survivors standing on the path where 504 old men, women, children and babies of their relatives were killed by American troops. 1980 6 15 24"x 36"
15 LON66334 Mai Chiem Tiem, 46 years old, from Dong Ha town, lost his hand and had his optic nerves severed when he picked up a pineapple bomb in his paddy field in January 1987. 1987 6 16 24"x 36"
16 NYC47884 Le Thi Lien?s father was a US engineer who returned to the States in 1970. His wife wrote, ?Don?t ever try to contact my husband again.î Now all that Lien has is an old photograph of her father and mother. 1985 5 17 24"x 36"
17 LON66325 Cu Teo, son of an American, does the same agricultural work as all the other peasants in the area and left school for the fields because the other children taunted him. 1985 6 18 24"x 36"
18 NYC34708 Penh, 14 years old, born in Tramkok district, Takeo Province. He begs with his parents. 2000 12 19 7'6"x 5'
19 NYC47605 Nguyen Thi Van Long is 18 years old. Her father was in the war for 5 years along the DMZ. She has speech and hearing problems because her ears and mouth are deformed. She has lived for 6 years in Friendship Village in Hanoi where she now spends most of her time making paper flowers. 1998 13 20 5'5"x 3'8"
20 LON66333 Children with an unexploded bomb in the courtyard of their home in a village near Vinh in what was North Vietnam. 1987 5 21 24"x 36"
21 LON66351 At the Truong Son cemetery there is a wall listing the names of over 12,000 combatants. A similar memorial for all the Vietnamese who died, compared to the one in Washington, would have to be nine miles long. 1999 5 22 24"x 36"
22 LON66321 The four men who fired the first shots in the Vietnam War on January 17th 1960. Their capture of a Diem military outpost is officially recognized as the start of the war. 5 23 24"x 36"
23 NYC26738 On a U.S. aircraft carrier in the South China Sea pilots never saw the faces of those they killed and maimed. It was considered important to protect men from sights that could produce emotional reactions. 1971 15 24 6' x 9'
24 PAR93968 This woman was tagged with the designation VNC (Vietnamese civilian). The wounded were normally tagged VCS (Vietcong suspect) while the dead were posthumously elevated to the rank of VCC (Vietcong confirmed). 1967 12 25 7'6"x 5'
25 PAR93992 Ten-year old South Vietnamese soldier described as a ?little tigerî for killing two ?Vietcong women cadreî ? his mother and teacher, it was rumoured. 1968 13 26 5'5"x 3'7"
26 PAR93908 Chinook helicopters were used to relocate peasants to camps, surrounded by barbed wire, and bearing a sign saying, ?Welcome to Freedom.î Here, peasants were delivered in a dust storm whipped up by the helicopter. 1967 3 27 24"x 36"
27 PAR94011 Captured Vietcong soldier before being taken away for interrogation that invariably involved torture. 1970 3 28 24"x 36"
28 PAR93989 The battle for District 8 in Saigon in May 1968 produced many civilian casualties. This woman hit by helicopter rocket fire was helped by a nervous South Vietnamese soldier. 1968 3 29 24"x 36"
WALL TEXT TWO: Quotes from reviews. 7' X 5'
29 PAR93991 Soldiers of the U.S. 9th Division during urban fighting were sent to retake the suburbs of Saigon from the Vietcong. Despite what his demeanour implies, this soldier was being shot at. 1968 3 30 24"x 36"
30 PAR93986 Refugee from the U.S. bombing of the ?showcaseî district of Saigon in 1968. It housed pro-American Catholics relocated from the North after partition in 1954. 1968 3 31 24"x 36"
31 PAR63320 Soldiers on a ?search and destroyî mission in a village in Quang Ngai Province. The men were killed and later an artillery strike obliterated the village. 1967 1 32 24"x 36"
32 PAR94043 At the age of two, this boy was in the arms of his fleeing mother when she was killed by a helicopter gunship. He survived but went insane. When helicopters pass overhead he goes berserk trying to shut out their sound. 1970 1 33 24"x 36"
33 PAR111263 American soldiers often showed compassion toward the Vietcong. This wounded VC had fought for three days with his intestines in a cooking bowl strapped onto his stomach. 1967 1 34 24"x 36"
34 PAR106882 In Quang Ngai Province everything that moved was a target. The newly developed antipersonnel weapons caused a problem ? their plastic darts were designed not to show up on X-rays. 1967 1 35 24"x 36"
35 NYC36062 The Saigon fire department collected corpses during the Tet offensive. They had just placed this young girl, killed by U.S. helicopter fire, in the back of their truck, where her distraught brother found her. 1968 1 36 24"x 36"
36 PAR94012 This amphibious assault by US Marines was to establish a beachhead for a barbecue. Vast quantities of meat and beer were consumed while local Vietnamese looked on. 1970 12 37 7'6"x 5'
Pictures 38-45 are suspended from the gallery ceiling by thin cables and are paired in an elongated M sequence.
There are 4 independent aluminum frames with pictures mounted back-to-back using industrial velcro.
37 PAR94017 The Vietnamese are a rice-growing people. For two thousand years their adeptness at pursuing this perennial task has been sustained by their belief in a harmony between man and nature. 1970 10 38 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling. This begins the first of 8, back-to-back pictures suspended in an elongated M, allowing 6 of the eight pictures to play off one another and 2 as standalones.
38 LON66349 Near Hanoi, billboards nowadays cast a dark shadow over the rice fields. 1999 10 39 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling juxtaposed to 38.
39 NYC47990 Like their fathers before them, the first returning military prepare to see the sights. Unlike the 3,500 Marines who arrived 39 years earlier, their intentions were friendly. 2004 10 40 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling.
40 LON66366 The sailors made a beeline for the nearest bar with the words of their Commander John T. Lauer ringing in their ears. He announced that his crew ?is very thrilled to see Vietnamese people and culture.î 2004 11 41 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling juxtaposed to 40.
41 NYC48162 Many observers claim that Ho Chi Minh City has reverted to the old Saigon. With crime, corruption, beggars, drugs and prostitution back to wartime levels the city is now qualified to join the world community. 1999 11 42 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling.
42 LON66337 Mrs. Nguyen Thi Lop, 56, the widow of Bay Lop murdered by General Nguyen Ngoc Loan during the Tet Offensive. He was captured whilst attacking the Naval Headquarters in Saigon. 1988 11 43 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling.
43 LON66344 Families live in shacks beneath hoardings for products they can rarely afford. 11 44 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling.
44 NYC48071 Many families who live in house boats on Halong Bay rarely come ashore. Many are born, live and die without setting foot on dry land. 2000 10 45 3'6"x 4'6" This picture is suspended from ceiling juxtaposed to 44.
PhotoVoice
Count Image # Thumb Caption Date Box # Size (H x W) Note/Condition
45 PVSV45-06 Life on the River. (Vo Cong Thang) 2004 9 1 18"x 24"
46 PVSV21-08 Standing alone among Earth, Sky and Water. (Truong Ngoc Lam) 1998 8 2 18"x 24"
47 PVSV17b Flying to Reach the Sun. I saw my friend playing in the rain. He was a street child like me. I was so excited to take this picture, to capture the expression of freedom. (Vo Cong Thang) 1998 8 3 18"x 24"
48 PVSV11-03 As a child, I was not as happy as other kids my age. Even now I don?t know who my father is or what he looks like. Living without a father figure, all I had was my sickly mothers love and care. But she died of disease when I was 12 years old, abandoning me to a small tattered shanty which I soon left to lead the life of a wanderer. (Chau Quang Ha) 1998 8 4 18"x 24"
49 PVSV30-11 Drought. (Truong Ngoc Lam) 1998 8 5 18"x 24"
50 PVSV2156-04 Early Morning Sunlight. (Nguyen Hoang Duc) 2004 9 6 18"x 24"
51 PVSV12-07 A usual scene. I scour the streets to fetch other exploited working and street children so that they can also join the shelter like me. To persuade them, I am determined to be better and make myself an example of reform. (Chau Quang Ha) 1999 9 7 18"x 24"
52 PVSV2-10 What to do? I have seen a lot of pitiful plights. I know that a long road with many difficulties lies ahead, waiting for me. I have spent part of my life in agonies, great hardships and inferiority complexes. Now I know that life is a must, and a grand thing provided that we appreciate it and find out happiness in disguise. (Words by Trang, Photography by Truong Ngoc Lam) 2000 9 8 18"x 24"
53 PVSV3-09 Helping Mother. It is said that rice is more valuable than gold. (Le Huu Hieu) 2000 8 9 18"x 24"
 
Count Image # Thumb Caption Date Box # Size (H x W) Note/Condition
54 NYC34732 Pham Thi Thuy Linh was born in Ho Chi Minh City with no arms so she learnt to write with her feet. Her father was an officer who worked around planes that dropped Agent Orange. 2002 7 10 36"x 24"
55 NYC1863 Le Thi Mit ties the hands of her son Nguyen Van Lanh to prevent him from harming himself or others. His brother, Truong, has an eye defect that makes him very sensitive to light. 1998 7 11 24"x 36"
56 NYC34713 Mother and her child from Svay Rieng Province. He suffered from hydro encephalitis, a common result of Agent Orange poisoning. He died four months after this picture was taken. 2001 7 12 36"x 24"
57 NYC1846 Le Thi Dat, 13, suffers from spinal bifida and mental retardation. Her father was a soldier in the Saigon army, stationed near Cam Nghia, his native village. 2001 7 13 24"x 36"
58 LON66369 Nguyen Minh Phuc, a little girl born in Tay Ninh in November 2000. She is suffering from hydro-encephalitis caused by Agent Orange. 2004 7 14 36"x 24"
Early Work and non-Viet Nam photos
Count Image # Thumb Caption Date Box # Size (H x W) Note/Condition
59 NYC36084 Since ancient times, the shield has presented a challenge ? how to see the enemy without sacrificing protection. The latest version used in Northern Ireland is made of easily scratched Plexiglas. 1973 19 1 4' x 6'
60 LON47612 In the Welsh village of Pant-y-Waen this young boy epitomizes our ambivalence for rugby and music. When I asked him what he was doing, he replied, ?My mother gave it to me to mend.î 1961 19 2 5'6"x 3'8"
61 NYC36040 There had been a hanging that morning in Pentonville prison in north London. Friends of the condemned man gathered outside the still-unopened pub opposite the main gate. 1958 16 3 2'4"x 2'4"
62 NYC36065 In Wales, Dylan Thomas made Laugharne, the longest monosyllabic name on the map, famous. I met this sparkling girl years later ? she was the landlady of Thomas? local pub. 1952 16 4 2'4"x 2'4"
63 NYC36037 This group of Liverpool school children and their teacher were waiting to board a bus. Liverpudlians have always expressed an intensity rarely seen on other faces. 1952 16 5 2'4"x 2'4"
64 NYC36039 Coal miners, Wales. These kings of the working class sensed that their world would soon change. Miners always elicited extreme reactions from the ruling class, who saw them as an enemy to be destroyed. 1957 16 6 2'4"x 2'4"
65 NYC36119 A dead Iraqi soldier lies in the sands of the Kuwait while oil fires burn. 1991 21 7
66 NYC36103 Filipinos give new meaning to religious devotion. Every Easter, Bible stories are brought to life as young men are crucified using real nails. 1983 21 8 6' x 8'10"
67 NYC15964 Grenadians for generations had welcomed the only foreigners they encountered ? tourists -- so U.S. forces had the rare experience of being surrounded by polite and friendly locals. 1983 19 9 4' x 6'
68 NYC36057 The Korean War had been over for fourteen years. This was the main street of Sokcho, a town in North Korea before the war began ? now complemented with a reminder. 1967 19 10 4' x 6'
69 NYC36078 The people who inhabit the highlands of New Guinea exist on a diet of starchy roots. Then, one morning, they massacre thousands of pigs and everyone joins in for an orgy of eating. ( 1973 22 11 5'9"x 8'7" Razor Cut Approx 6'' on top of Vinyl banner.
70 NYC36117 In a refugee camp this tied-up Dinka boy from Southern Sudan had gone insane after seeing his family massacred by government troops from the North. 1988 18 12 2' 9-7/8"x 4' 2-3/4"
71 NYC17247 Swedish visitors have made Gambia a favoured tourist destination. In earlier times, slaves were gathered on the island in mid-river before being shipped to the West Indies. 1978 18 13 2' 9-3/4"x 4' 2-3/4"
72 NYC36105 When 6,000 elite troops of the American armed forces invaded Grenada in 1983, they managed to overcome token resistance. President Reagan declared that America was again ?standing tallî after Vietnam. 1983 19 14 6'1"x 4'2"
73 NYC36085 The incongruities of daily life in an urban war zone. For years, the people of Northern Ireland have lived in a strange and strained symbiosis with the occupying British army. 1973 17 15 36"x 24"
74 NYC36075 British soldier, Northern Ireland. This soldier was facing a hostile crowd of youngsters and, for a moment, his expression revealed the disdain of the average British Tommy. 1972 17 16 36"x 24"
75 NYC36077 Funeral procession, Northern Ireland. As an Irish poet put it, ?The tragedy of Northern Ireland is that it is now a society in which the dead console the living.î The Northern Ireland Tourist Board, with mindless nerve, ran an advertisement: ?For generations, a wide range of shooting in Northern Ireland has provided all sections of the population with a pastime.î 1972 17 17 3'4"x 5'
76 NYC36052 In the narrow terraced streets built for the working people of Northern Ireland the closely-knit communities of differing religious persuasions are encouraged to battle one another. 1965 17 18 5'7"x 7'