Quan dan mien nam thang lon [Army of people in the South win a great victory]

Place Asia: Vietnam, North Vietnam
Accession Number ARTV10380
Collection type Art
Measurement Sheet: 77.1 x 53 cm
Object type Poster
Physical description gouache on paper
Maker Unknown
Place made Vietnam
Date made post-1970
Conflict Vietnam, 1962-1975
Copyright

Item copyright: Unlicensed copyright

Description

This poster depicts two smiling female militia loading a rocket launcher in a jungle setting. The Viet Cong flag is presented in the upper right corner. Female militia were a common theme in North Vietnamese propaganda posters, as the female workforce was considered necessary in order to build the economy. Women were encouraged to educate themselves and contribute to the revolution. The Viet Cong flag is presented in the upper right corner, suggesting that the poster was produced to raise morale in the North by implying that they were fighting with the South, not against them. The real enemy was the (here unseen) foreign forces, including the American and Australian soldiers.
This poster shows some evidence that it may have been produced after the conclusion of the Vietnam War for the tourist market. As such it represents the broader social and economic movement in contemporary Vietnam of the commodification of propaganda imagery and war 'souvenirs' for a commercial and tourist market.