Changing motorcycles four times to travel more than 160,000 kilometers across Vietnam over the past 14 years, artist Dang Ai Viet, 76, has painted the portraits of 3,157 Heroic Vietnamese Mothers – a solemn title given to women whose husbands and children made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Although her journey has been known and admired for a long time, her stories still touch the hearts of many people.

She began the journey when she was 62.

Over the past 14 years, the senior woman has traveled alone to meet Heroic Mothers nationwide.

She came to talk with Heroic Mothers, eat meals with them, listen to their stories, and paint them.

During the journey, she sometimes had to pass through forests and mountains, even suffered hunger, thirst, or failed to find accommodation.

However, she was never fearful of hardships.

Viet noted that only love gives people the strength to achieve what seems impossible.

She wanted to honor the lives of her companions in wartime and the days she spent fighting for the country’s peace.

As a young woman, Viet was an artist for Phu Nu Giai Phong (Liberated Women) newspaper and fought against U.S. troops in Trang Bang Town, Tay Ninh Province, near Ho Chi Minh City.

Now, she is racing against time to sketch portraits of Heroic Vietnamese Mothers.

"My biggest regret is not painting [Heroic Mothers] before they passed away. While I'm still healthy, I must race against time to honor them and keep up with my own health.

"I will portray Heroic Vietnamese Mothers as long as my heart still beats."

She recalled that when she reached Lai Chau Province in northern Vietnam in 2011, only one Heroic Mother was alive there.

On June 16 this year, she immediately came to Ha Tinh Province in north-central Vietnam after painting Heroic Vietnamese Mothers in Da Teh District, Lam Dong Province, located in the Central Highlands.

Viet said she had received a report from the Ha Tinh Department of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs saying that the province was home to 21 Heroic Mothers, but when she arrived in the province, one Heroic Mother had passed away.

After sketching Heroic Vietnamese Mothers' portraits, Viet will focus on painting those winning the titles of Heroes of the People's Armed Forces and Heroes of Labor in Vietnam. 

She has completed the job in two military regions. Seven remaining military regions are waiting for her, Viet shared.

Her painting journey is increasingly hectic but she feels happy, the artist said.

She wants to remind young generations of those who sacrificed their lives for the country’s peace through her paintings.

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