Ian Robertson's poignant image from Vietnam warfront shortlisted for national War Memorial's Napier Waller Art Prize 2020

The image, taken by Port Macquarie's Ian Robertson who was serving in the Infantry Corps at the time, has been shortlisted in the Napier Waller Art Prize 2020 - an online exhibition curated for the Australian War Memorial website.

Mr Robertson's photographic work is one of 31 short-listed artworks chosen for the exhibition from 141 entries received.

August 18 is Vietnam Veteran's Day, or Long Tan Day.

It commemorates the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan in 1966 and is a time to remember the sacrifices of those who died and the efforts of almost 60,000 Australians who served during the 10 years of the nation's involvement in the Vietnam War.

Mr Robertson's photograph is titled 'Girl out of focus' . He said it wasn't until many years passed and he finally had the image printed, that he realised how poignant the blurred face had become.

He served in South Vietnam as a rifleman with the Royal Australia Infantry Corps in 1969 having been conscripted under Australia's National Service Scheme.

"I took this photograph while my platoon was on operations in South Vietnam in early 1969," Mr Robertson said.

"We had passed through a small village and the girl was standing alone, watching us - strangers carrying weapons.

"I didn't ask to take the photo, which was another intrusion. It wasn't until many years later, when I had the film processed, that I realised the girl was out of focus with the rest of the photo.

"It seemed then, and now, that her ghost-like image was appropriate in that pointless war."

Mr Robertson said photography is not a hobby he continued after the war, but was pleased he was able to extract some of his wartime images from slides and into print to share with the Australian War Memorial.

"When we came home we it was the middle of 1969 and there was a lot of anti-Vietnam sentiment," he remembered.

"Our battalion marched through Brisbane and we got a lot of congratulations, but we also got a lot of booing.

"We wanted to just get out of our uniforms. We had five day train trip back to Perth and coming out of Adelaide there were a lot of uni students who were very abusive to us.

"At the time, in late 60s and early 70s we didn't stick our head up very much."

Mr Robertson said 'Girl out of focus' epitomised the suffering and fear experienced by children in war.

"Kids suffer most in every conflict. We had contact with a Viet Cong battalion and afterwards we went through a pineapple plantation and there was a little girl similar to the age of the one I took the photo of, sitting on an old man's knee in the kitchen and we came in with our rifles and rounded people up.

"A lot of veterans carried a lot of guilt. Society changes and there's a lot of upheaval. War is pointless before, during and after. No good comes from it."

The annual Napier Waller Art Prize is open to former and current Australian Defence Force personnel. It encourages artistic excellence, promotes the transformative power of creativity, and raises awareness of the experiences and talent of service personnel.

The art works reflect the resilience, imagination, skill and humour that members of the Australian Defence Force are well regarded for. They also comment on the challenges and consequences of military service.

The online exhibition opened on August 17 on the Australian War Memorial website. You can view the exhibition here.

The public is invited to vote online for their favourite work in the People's Choice award, the winner of which will receive $5,000.

Voting for the People's Choice Award closes on November 22. An exhibition of the artworks awarded 'highly commended' will be held at the Australian War Memorial from September 25 to November 22.

In addition to a $10,000 cash prize, the winning artist will have their work become part of the Memorial's National Collection, and will receive a two-week research residency in the Art section of the Memorial, and a mentoring day with eX de Medici, former official war artist to the Solomon Islands.

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