Hmong Veteran, from the series Attention

Pao Houa Her, Hmong Veteran, from the series Attention, 2013, archival pigment print mounted on aluminum composite, framed, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, in partnership with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, 2023.34.1.2, Courtesy of the artist and Bockley Gallery. © Pao Houa Her
Copied Pao Houa Her, Hmong Veteran, from the series Attention, 2013, archival pigment print mounted on aluminum composite, framed, 52 3⁄8 × 42 1⁄4 × 1 3⁄8 in. (133.0 × 107.3 × 3.5 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, in partnership with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, 2023.34.1.2, Courtesy of the artist and Bockley Gallery. © Pao Houa Her

Artwork Details

Title
Hmong Veteran, from the series Attention
Artist
Date
2013
Location
Dimensions
52 3⁄8 × 42 1⁄4 × 1 3⁄8 in. (133.0 × 107.3 × 3.5 cm)
Copyright
Courtesy of the artist and Bockley Gallery. © Pao Houa Her
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, in partnership with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center
Mediums Description
archival pigment print mounted on aluminum composite, framed
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait male
  • Occupation — military
  • Dress — uniform — military uniform
Object Number
2023.34.1.2
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2023.34.1.2

Artwork Description

Pao Houa Her created the Attention series after attending a distant uncle's funeral, where to her surprise she witnessed a military-style ceremony performed by Hmong men in uniform. The men told Her they were not affiliated with any branch of the US military. They had learned the burial rites from YouTube videos, and had purchased all their uniforms, pins, and medals.

The men belonged to the Special Guerrilla Units that had been trained and led into combat by the CIA in Laos during the Vietnam War, in which an estimated thirty-five thousand Hmong soldiers died. After the war, these veterans and their families fled to the United States, establishing today's Hmong American diaspora. Echoing traditions of official portraiture in Western art, Her's photographs express the men's continuing desire to re-insert themselves into US military history through self-fashioning, drawing attention to their omission from official narratives.