by Nam Tran Nguyen
photos courtesy of VietHopeg

Born in Ha Noi, Viet Nam in 1971, Chau Huynh spent the early part of her childhood drawing and painting. Some of her first sketches were published in the local school paper and the community newspaper. But very quickly, drawing and painting were no longer an option for the budding young artist.

Huynh’s dream of becoming an artist was left by the wayside amidst the chaos of her family life. In 1980 her parents divorced. A few years later, her mother was diagnosed with leukemia. Huynh took on the role of taking care of her younger brother and sister and was forced to quit school to work and earn a living. She continued to support her family for 25 years. Finally in 1999, Huynh came to the United States and was able to start a new life and pursue her passion for art.

On April 25, 2006, the Worth Ryder Art Gallery at UC Berkeley opened its doors to Huynh’s first art exhibition, “Unfinished Story.” The exhibit featured eight original works of art—seven quilts and one installation. Walking through Worth Ryder Art Gallery, one is immediately struck by the sheer size of each quilt and the distinct colors and patterns. The colors vary from quilt to quilt; however, each color palette conveys the quilt’s theme. In Vietnamese culture, yellow and red are often used in tandem to symbolize unity and nationalism. Huynh contrasts these colors, which have defined Viet Nam for many centuries, with green and burgundy to suggest a sense of loss and longing.

While the colors draw one’s attention to the quilts, upon closer examination, it is the intricate details that are most surprising. Stitch by stitch, the audience can see how figures and patterns merge to create a unified vision that is both personal and historical.

One guest said of the exhibit, “These quilts represent a narrative—Chau Huynh’s narrative.”

Thematically, “Unfinished Story” explores the interplay between traditional Vietnamese culture and the experiences of Vietnamese Americans through illustration, Vietnamese embroidery, and traditional American quiltmaking. As one visitor suggested, perhaps the best way to understand Huynh’s work is to view the exhibit as one would a timeline.

Appropriately, the starting point of Huynh’s narrative begins with a piece entitled “Au Co,” the legendary mother of Viet Nam. Depicted in concentric circles, the images on this quilt portray the mythical birth of Viet Nam 4,000 years ago. At the center of the quilt is a burning sun. Within each concentric circle are finely stitched cranes and dragons representing the first sons and daughters of Viet Nam.

The Vietnamese creation myth begins with Au Co, a beautiful crane who was Queen of the Land, and Lac Long Quan, a dragon who was King of the Sea. One day, Lac Long Quan traveled to the land where he met Au Co. They fell in love, wed, and in due time, Au Co gave birth to 50 sons and 50 daughters. However, as time passed, Lac Long Quan yearned to return to his kingdom in the sea. He eventually went back to the ocean and took his sons with him, while Au Co remained on the land with her daughters.

Before departing, Lac Long Quan told Au Co: “Even though we are separated, we still belong to each other. I will come when you need me.”

With the separation, Au Co single-handedly raised her daughters; she protected, fed and educated them all. Au Co’s daughters became mothers to Vietnamese sons and daughters, and thus, Au Co became known as the progenitor of the Vietnamese people.

The second quilt in the exhibit, ”The Split,“ tells the story of war-torn Viet Nam. Stitched on the quilt is a map of Viet Nam; the map is cut in half at the 17th parallel to represent the country’s division in 1954 into North and South Viet Nam. In numerous situations, Huynh’s family included, the Viet Nam War pitted family against family, brother against brother, sister against sister, and son against father. This quilt symbolizes that painful division.