Everyday Experiences

The Russell Library is proud to announce the opening of An Artist in South Vietnam: Works by Jon Nielsen, a new exhibit showcasing the original sketches and photography of the Christopher Fleming Collection of Jon Nielsen Visual Materials.

Jon Nielsen (1912-1986) was a Danish-American portraitist and illustrator of children’s books, whose career spanned over thirty-five years and four continents. In the mid-1960s, the U.S. government asked Nielsen to travel to Vietnam and sketch portraits of American soldiers, as part of a larger effort to provide entertainment and boost troop morale. While there, he spent leisure time documenting the everyday lives of both the soldiers and Vietnamese citizens through photographs and sketches. In contrast to the sensational and often brutal news coverage of events in Vietnam, Nielsen's work shows the domestic side of a country torn by war. The exhibit features a selection of photographs, as well as original ink and watercolor drawings used in the finished book Artist in South Vietnam, published in 1969.

The exhibit will remain on display in the Russell Library’s main gallery through September 15, 2010. The Library is open from 8:30am-4:30pm, Monday through Friday, with the exception of University holidays. For further information on the Christopher Fleming Collection of Jon Nielsen Visual Materials, please contact russlib@uga.edu or call (706) 542-5788.

Post by Heather Highfield, Summer Intern, Russell Library