Interview with Laomerica 50 Exhibit Organizers

Running now until September 27th at the Minneapolis Central Library, the historic Laomerica 50 Exhibit brings together art, photography, literature, and history to explore how we use our voices in a democracy. Over the past five years, the exhibit organizers gathered archival photographs, visual art, short films, textiles, rare books, and cultural objects. These items reflect the Lao community’s memories, traditions, dreams, and visions not only in Minnesota, but globally.

Anna Douangphachanh, Legacies of War Board Member, interviewed the exhibit organizers Bryan Thao Worra, award-winning Lao American writer, and Bay Koulabdara, designer and illustrator, about the exhibit. 

Anna Douangphachanh: Congratulations on creating this exhibit! Growing up in eastern Washington and in Green Bay, Wisconsin, I never saw or heard of anything like it. It’s exciting to see projects like this. I imagine it took a lot of work and dedication, especially since it was created over five years. What do you hope people will take away from viewing it? 

Bryan Thao Worra: The themes of democracy and diaspora were important to us as we explored our first 50 years since the last U.S. bombing in Laos, and how our communities have spread to the U.S. and other democracies such as France and Australia.  We wanted to hold an exhibit to spark conversations and show that our history is tangible, our communities have stories to tell, and that the next generation can add meaningfully to our appreciation and preservation of history, with a sense of pride, compassion, inclusion, hope, tradition, and opportunity. But we can't take that for granted and many things could still be lost if we don't engage with it.

Bay Koulabdara: Bryan was the brains in creating the exhibit and he pulled all these artists and their work from across the globe together. He also pulled me into the project over a year ago because of my expertise in exhibit design. This is a substantial and meaningful project, so I'm glad he asked me to be part of it. I hope this exhibit inspires pride in our community and inspires the next generation to follow their passions, not just in the arts. Although this exhibit focuses on the Lao artist community, I think it still serves as a reminder that the Lao community as a whole are very capable. Look how far we've come. I saw our elders work in the assembly lines and meat processing plants, and they worked so hard to push us to achieve more. When I was a kid, I didn't see things like this exhibit, showcasing award-winning Lao professionals. As a result, I thought my natural path would be to follow in their footsteps, and being able to do what I love for a living was out of the realm of possibilities. 

Anna: Do you have a favorite exhibit piece? 

Bryan: It's tough to choose one because so many of these pieces come with very personal stories attached to the process of acquiring them and getting permission to share them with the public. But I think among the standouts for me is a rare press photo of Vice President Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota visiting Laos in 1966; a 5,000 kip note from 1975 that was the last year of the Royal Lao Government; and then there’s the giant painting "Wat" by Malichansouk Kouanchao that highlighted the plight of Cambodian deportees whose families escaped the Killing Fields only to be sent back. 

But time and again, I love sharing the story of a Lao language typewriter that a Hmong refugee brought with him from Laos to a refugee camp in Thailand and then all of the way to Minnesota. He was certain we'd need it to help each other. Of all of the things he could have carried with him while escaping with his family, this mattered to him. It's one of the only Lao typewriters in the United States. I'm not certain how much it was used after the war, since widespread use of computers began in the 1980s. But he still held on to it until 2020, when he felt it was time to let it go. By chance I happened to be nearby to pick it up. 

Bay: I really like the textiles like the woven Lao silk by Bounxou Daoheuang.  I discovered her work through the exhibit. It spoke to me since the art I create has similar elements. While she uses a loom and needle to create intricate designs, I use my architectural pencil to create the tiny details in my drawings. We both create by, in my case, drawing one line at a time, and in her case, one thread at a time. 

When I see Lao textiles, I think of all the artisans who made them and how much skill and labor go into the art. Their work is art, but most of them are creating these pieces to make a living. 

Anna: Bryan, what are some things you've learned in this process of collecting the items and the stories that are tied to them? 

Bryan: History is tangible but elusive, and there's more than one way to tell our histories…[there are] so many photos and objects that can connect us to our past that haven’t—and in some cases, can’t be–digitized or just looked up online or bought off of a website or from some big box store. In refugee households and among the collection, there's a few things that are "easy" to find, but there are also the rare things, important things, that aren't valued the way they should be because some people don't know their stories or how they tie to our journeys and Lao diaspora. It was challenging trying to collect pieces before they were thrown out or donated to a thrift shop. As more of our elders pass on, this problem will continue to grow and we're in a particular race against time with little formal or even informal support from U.S. historians and their associations.

Anna: You both know of the enduring unexploded ordnance (UXO) issues in Laos — does the exhibit touch on this subject?

Bryan: Many of the artists in this exhibit have addressed UXO in their work over the years and took action by creating pieces specifically about UXO. Many also held events and fundraisers to support UXO clearance efforts. You can see the enduring issues of UXO most overtly in the pieces displayed by Krysada Panusith Phounsiri and Tennessee artist Sisavanh Phouthavong Houghton, but also through the Legacies of War display.  Among those items on display are utensils made from unexploded cluster bombs; the replicas of cluster bombs used during the war by Phouthavong in her "Scattered Bomblet" project; and images from collaborations with the Lao Student Association of Minnesota, as well as the 2010 Legacies of War: Refugee Nation Twin Cities exhibit with Pangea World Theater, Theater TeAda, Intermedia Arts and Lao Center of Minnesota. There is also a newspaper where the bombing of Laos made front page news. You can also see a “ tip khao”/“กะຕິບເຂົ້າ or sticky rice basket shaped like a cluster bomb that was created for the first meeting of state parties during the ratification of the UN Convention on Cluster Munitions.

There is also is a book of drawings, reprinted versions, made by villagers in Laos depicting their experience with the bombings. Collectively the drawings are called “The Originals” and these images spurred the start of Legacies of War. 

Bay: Touching on “The Originals” book — the villagers are telling a story through their drawings and perhaps unknowingly created art. It’s like flipping through history too. I really want people to be able to hold and flip through the book, because seeing the drawings in person and holding them in your hands help convey their experiences. 

Anna: Do you have any personal history with bombs in Laos or know of family history? 

Bryan: My father had flown in Laos and Southeast Asia with Royal Air Lao, and knew some of the pilots who flew for airlines like Air America and Bird & Sons. While I'd grown up with a sense of bombs in Laos, I didn't fully appreciate the extent of the situation until I saw it traveling through Laos on my first trip back to the country after 30 years. I learned more during my travels to Luang Prabang, Xieng Khouang, and Vientiane, and then later discovered that bombs were manufactured here in Minnesota. It was eye-opening and pervasive, and I felt like we had to be more vocal about this chapter in our shared history.

Bay: I came to the States from Laos when I was 9 years old, so I have vivid memories of being in Laos. I used to walk the countryside as well as the capital city, Vientiane, with my friends. In Laos, kids my age, we all looked for scrap metal. We carried a magnet to test the pieces. We'd get excited if the magnet didn’t stick,  because then the pieces were either copper or aluminum and we could sell them. At that young age, I didn't know what UXOs were, but I was familiar with bullets and how they worked.  I often found large bullets, probably 50 calibers. I would knock the head off and keep the lead to make sinkers for fishing lines. I'd empty the gun powder and keep the aluminum or copper shell casing to sell later. My friends and I would then use the gun powder to make fireworks.  At the time, I didn’t realize the danger that was left for us from the American Secret War in Laos.

Anna: Are the exhibit items available to view online? 

Bryan: We can't exhibit everything online, and many of these pieces need to be experienced in person from multiple angles to fully appreciate them and their size (or lack thereof), especially the textiles. But we're putting several albums together in addition to social media posts that community members can look at and share with others. Here’s what we have so far online: Laomerica 50: Minneapolis

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The show is located on the 2nd floor of the 1,600 foot Cargill Gallery, at 300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN. It is open on most days starting at 9AM until 8PM (M-T) and 5PM (F-Su).  This exhibit is free to the public and is suitable for families of all ages. “Laomerica 50: Democracy and Diaspora” coincides with Lao American Artist Heritage Month. It is also a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Lao Center of Minnesota, the 30th anniversary of the Paj Ntaub Voice Hmoob Literary Journal, 20 years of Legacies of War, and 10 years of Sahtu Press, the first Lao American publishing company.