SFMoMA Museum of Modern Art

An-my Lê

26 Jan - 04 May 2008

An-My Lê
Small Wars: Explosion, 1999-2002
Gelatin silver print
Courtesy Murray Guy Gallery, New York
© An-My Lê
An-my Lê
Small Wars
January 26, 2008 - May 04, 2008

In her recent photographic series Small Wars and 29 Palms, Vietnamese American artist An-My Lê delves into Americans’ complicated relationship with war by turning her lens on two of the less familiar sides of conflict: reenactment and rehearsal, respectively. With a style that mirrors documentary photography, Lê depicts Vietnam War reenactors staging theatrical battles in the forests of Virginia and soldiers at the Twentynine Palms, California, military base training for the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — warlike activities without the mortal dangers of war. This exhibition unites 50 large-format, black-and-white pictures from the two series, offering a novel perspective on military engagements that maintains a deliberate ambiguity.