Ann Phong

Ann Phong is a Vietnamese American painter whose work reflects on her escape from Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War as well as the cross-generational experiences of Vietnamese immigrants to the United States. Her recent paintings also tackle the localized effects of pressing global issues such as climate change on Vietnamese and American communities. These ten large-scale acrylic paintings focus on Phong’s exploration of the manifold aspects of her identity as a diasporic artist, as well as the increasingly devastating effect of broad global calamities on Vietnamese communities. Despite her incredible biography and body of work, she has not been the subject of focused academic research on post–Vietnam War Vietnamese in the U.S. 

Ann Phong in her studio.
A person painting with a paint brush on a canvas.

Self
2008
24 x 24 in.
Acrylic on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

A painting of that seems like water with different shades of blue.

Box of Water #2
2011
40 x 30 in.
Acrylic with used objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

A person falling on grass.

Up and Down in Life
2017
48 x 36 in.
Acrylic on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

A painting that focuses on a circle with blue color paint.

Looking up from the Bottom of Life
2018
32 x 41 in.
Acrylic with used objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Painting of waves of water in the sea.

The Angel in the Sea
2018
20 x 20 in.
Acrylic on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Different shades of green in a painting and a person standing alone.

But Where are you Really from?
2019
25 x 36 in.
Acrylic and found objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Painting of yellow flowers.

Nature in our Environment
Mask Series #3
2021
48 x 80 in.
Acrylic and found objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Painting of bright red flowers.

Traces of Humanity
2021
60 x 48 in.
Acrylic and found objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Painting of a woman looking at flowers.

Searching for the Hill to Climb
2022
84 x 48 in.
Acrylic on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California

Painting of what seems to be a horizon.

The Journey in the Dark
2023
20 x 22 in.
Acrylic with used objects on canvas
Estate of the artist, Orange County, California