With the use of oral histories, portraits, and personal artifacts, this interactive installation explores the impact of the Vietnam War on the lives of Brooklyn’s diverse residents from the first person perspective. As audience members walked around the exhibit, they were invited to stand in front of the portraits and listen to an audio track of the veteran depicted telling their story. This was the Brooklyn Historical Society’s most popular exhibition and was extended for 2 years.
Edward Blanco
Katherine Bourdonnay
Bernard Edelman
Daniel Friedman
Joan Furey
Edwin German
Joseph Giannini
John Hamill with Denis Hamill
Neil Joseph Kenny
Paul Knox
Robert Ptachik
Herbert Sweat
Rudy Thomas
Phat Tran
Tony Velez
Anthony Wallace
Exhibition Team
Co-curators: Philip F. Napoli, Kate Fermoile
Exhibition Designer and Producer: Alison Cornyn
Oral Historian: Phil Napoli
Additional oral history and edits: Sady Sullivan
Writer: Joan Horn
Production: Picture Projects
Photography: Alison Cornyn
Photo Production: Marion Misilim
Technical Consultant: Gilles Peress
Graphic Design: Jeff Streeper
Architecture Design: Laura Kurgan
Architecture Rendering: Erik Carver, Kate Cullen
Engineering: Heather Dewey-Hagbord
Kiosk software design: Momo Vilaitanarak
Kiosk software programming: Stephan Knuesel
Technology Consultants: Sasha Harris -Cronin,
Kevin Walker
Product ion Assistants: Evelyn Chang, Valeria
Federici, Danielle Finkelstein, Colleen Longo
Kiosk furniture design: Robert Martin Designs
Construction: Andrew Quisling
Lighting: Jeff Nash
Scholarly Advisors: Bret Eynon, Michael Foley, and Marilyn Young
In Our Own Words: Portraits of Brooklyn’s Vietnam Veterans has been made possible by the Nathan Cummings Foundation. Additional support has also been provided by Brooklyn
College, HBO, American Technology Corporation, Tekserve, House of Troy Lighting, and Timothy Simons/FHL Bank San Francisco.
Additional support has been provided by the Independence Community Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and New York State Council on the Arts.
The New York Sun, Kate Taylor: Vietnam’s Legacy Heard in Brooklyn Museums, Dec. 13, 2007.
