2005 Press Releases

Vietnam: A Decade in Images

June 17, 2005

The Embassy of the United States of America is pleased to announce an exhibition of black and white photography entitled "Vietnam: A Decade in Images" by Peter Steinhauer and Nguyen Hoai Linh. The exhibition opening is a celebration of the official commemoration of the 10-year anniversary of normalization of diplomatic relations between the United States and Vietnam.

The exhibition consists of 60 black and white photographs of Vietnam taken between 1993 and 2004 celebrating the beauty and vitality of this dynamic country. The opening reception is scheduled for Tuesday, July 12, 2005 at the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum (by invitation only). The exhibition will be open to the public from July 13 through August 8. The Embassy of the United States thanks the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information and the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum, as well as the following corporate sponsors: Citigroup, KPMG, Liberty Mutual Insurance, International Data Group, Mast Industries and Hilton Hanoi Opera.

Importance of Exhibition:

The year 2005 marks ten years since the United States reestablished formal diplomatic relations with Vietnam. "Vietnam: A Decade in Images" celebrates this historic ten-year anniversary of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship with a selection of exemplary photographs of Vietnam by two friends: Peter Steinhauer, an American from Boulder, Colorado who has lived in Vietnam for eight years and currently resides in Ho Chi Minh City, and Nguyen Hoai Linh, a Vietnamese from Hanoi. Their photographs depict a peaceful and beautiful Vietnam, ranging from magnificent landscapes to intimate portraits and from ancient lifestyles to contemporary urban culture.

Steinhauer met Hoai Linh when he first arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam in 1993. At that time, Hoai Linh was a photographer for a Vietnamese news magazine while Peter was starting to produce a body of work for his first book on Vietnam. Peter and Linh discovered a deep emotional bond with one another though the methodology and style of working was widely different. Their friendship grew over the past ten years as they traveled and photographed the Vietnamese countryside together, each learning about the others culture and sharing a deep respect for one another’s professional work. Peter’s carefully studied, technically brilliant photos contrast starkly with Linh’s spontaneous, of the moment heartfelt reactions to the life around him. Each influenced one another’s perceptions while maintaining their own interpretation and artistic style.

Artists’ Background

Peter Steinhauer

Peter Steinhauer graduated from the Colorado Institute of Art with a degree in photography. His personal book projects include "Vietnam: Portraits and Landscapes", and upcoming release "Peter Steinhauer: The Enduring Spirit of Vietnam", a book of four portfolios made from 1996 to 2004. Some of Steinhauer’s works include portraits of Vietnamese lacquer painters for a exhibition catalog and two-year international traveling exhibition entitled "Vietnamese Lacquer Painting: A New Age". Peter’s work has also been published in the book projects "Passage to Vietnam and America 24/7" (and) in TIME Magazine, Newsweek, Communication Arts, Asian Art News and numerous other publications. Steinhauer (exhibits internationally in galleries and museums and in 2002 was profiled in a group photography exhibition at the Hemphill Gallery of Fine Arts in Washington, DC entitled Vietnam: Now and Then. In 2003 a large mural photograph of Steinhauer’s opened the landmark exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, "Vietnam – Journeys of Body, Mind and Spirit", a collaboration exhibition of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City and the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Presently Steinhauer continues with his deep passion of discovering the beauty, mystery and wonders of his adopted homeland.

Nguyen Hoai Linh

Hoai Linh graduated from the Social Sciences and Humanity University in Hanoi and is currently working for Viet Nam Pictorial - Viet Nam News Agency. Linh has been awarded first place in numerous nationwide photo competitions in Vietnam since 1994 and his works have been exhibited in Canada and France. His photos of Hanoi’s Ancient Citadel are featured in the June 2005 issue of National Geographic magazine.