The photographs in this exhibition are a compilation of photos and items collected by photographer James R. Thompson while serving with the U.S. Army in South Vietnam.
Thompson was attending the University of Minnesota when he was drafted in 1969. In August 1970, he was sent to Vietnam and assigned to a reconnaissance unit with the 101st Airborne. After six months, Thompson was re-assigned to be the battalion photographer and Public Information Officer. It was during this time that he took most of these photos and wrote a newsletter. About once a month he would accompany the U.S. Medics as they would attend to children from nearby villages.
When Thompson returned home in 1971, he put his negatives and all material from the war in storage where they remained for 40 years. He then returned to the University of Minnesota in 1972 where he completed his BFA in filmmaking and photography. In 2010, Thompson rediscovered the negatives and began the restoration of these Vietnam photos.
In this exhibition, Thompson has tried to show the many sides of this conflict.
