Khmer Rouge stories in graphic – but not explicit – detail

An exhibition opening at the French Institute on Thursday showcases the work and creative process of French-Khmer graphic novelist Chan Veasna – known as Tian – whose trilogy L’année du Lièvre (The Year of the Hare) recounts his family’s time under the Khmer Rouge regime.

But Tian’s art derives more from his meticulous research than his own memories. He was born three days after his family was ordered to leave Phnom Penh on April 17, 1975, and was only five when he escaped Cambodia to France with his parents in 1980.

Tian didn’t return to Cambodia until 2001. He now resides primarily in Lyon. “I realise, after all these years living in France, that I knew nothing about it: how they survived, what they suffered, how they loved through the Khmer Rouge,” the 40-year-old said.

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