IAP Director C. David Thomas was recently notified that he is the recipient of a Fulbright Scholar grant to Vietnam. David and his wife Jean will move to Hanoi in August and stay for approximately one year.

David will be working primarily with the Hanoi Fine Arts College to assist them in developing a graphic design curriculum, which will incorporate computers and current software programs. He will also help them to develop an internship and visiting artist program utilizing both local and international resources.

While in Hanoi David will also continue the work with the Indochina Arts Partnership programs including the Sister School Program and artist and exhibition exchanges.

His book "Ho Chi Minh: A Portrait" will be released in Hanoi September 2002 and in the U.S. in early 2003. This is the trade book version of the artist's book released last year. The trade book contains many changes in the text (by Lady Borton) and is a completely new design (by Thomas).

Ho Chi Minh City poet Mr. Nguyen Duy and David will continue working on their portfolio of poetry and images and expect to complete the work by mid 2003.

David first went to Vietnam as a combat artist/soldier in March 1969. He was stationed in Pleiku with the 20th Engineer Battalion Combat. Over the next year he did several different jobs ranging from drafting blueprints to driving a jeep and drawing pictures of various projects being built by the engineers.

He first returned to Vietnam in 1987 with the U.S. Indochina Reconciliation Project (now the Fund For Reconciliation and Development). Since then he has made dozens of trips coordinating cultural exchange projects between the U.S. and Vietnam.

Mr. David Thomas with friends
Book presentation at the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hue, VN.

Reprinted with permission from the IAP.