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Holiday Boy

Neon light, pine, mdf, acrylic
Photograph by Tom McNab

This work was originally commissioned for the group exhibition VIETNAM - ONE IN, ALL IN, and was made in response to conversations between myself and Uncle Bart (Richard) Sansbury about his time in the military on tour during the American/Vietnam War. Uncle Bart served in the Royal Australian Electrical Mechanical Engineers corp as a craftsman deployed in Vũng Tàu and Nui Dat.

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Artist Statement

Holiday Boy

2019

 

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He was 17 years old. He didn’t want to go to Vietnam, but after getting into trouble with Welfare for running away from a state-run foster home he was given three choices:

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  1. Army

  2. Navy

  3. Air Force

  4. State-run home

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Uncle Bart Sansbury told me that in Vietnam he was a lucky one, a Holiday Boy.

opening night
Artists and veterans on opening night for VIETNAM - ONE IN, ALL IN at Tandanya - photograph by Edwardo Crismani
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