a revised statement for "Amelie-An Series"...it is a work in progress!

Amelie-An was born in Can Tho, South Vietnam in February 2008 with a cleft lip/cleft palate and was abandoned as a new born infant. I came back to Vietnam in December of the same year ( for the first time since 1975 ) to adopt her as a child of special needs when she was 10 months old. By the time she was 2 years old, she went thru 2 painful surgeries to correct the problems….but that is not all. The doctor said she will need 3 more major surgeries by the age of 10 to fix the rest of her palate, lip, and nose. Now at age 4, with speech therapies and going to pre-school, she has major problems with talking since she can’t feel the inside of her mouth very well.

From the moment I saw her lying there in that little crib at the orphanage until now, I felt a great deal of empathy for Amelie-An, perhaps because I went thru a chain of events of misfortunes in my early life. I felt that it is my duty to give her all my care that she needs and painting her is a good way for me to show her that I love and adore her. I would like to immortalized her for as long as the world lives.

I felt in love with Amelie-An the moment I first held her in my arms. She smiled at me and I just knew we were meant to be together. Every time those big beautiful eyes looking at me touched my heart. It is hard to describe in words but there is something about the way she looks at me that I felt loved and admired.

Yes, I am documenting her life as she grows. I would like to capture the fleeting moments of her young life as much as I can…. All of the “Kodak Moments” that a mother would love to keep and treasure forever.
www.thunguyenpaintings.com