Remember Me, the Lost Diggers of Vignacourt
Une exposition des photos Thuillier

There is a special bond between the inhabitants of Vignacourt and the ANZACs. During the Great War, a farmer and his wife, both amateur photographers, Louis and Antoinette Thuillier, took portraits of hundreds of soldiers while they rested in this quiet village in the Somme just behind the front lines. In 2011, 4,000 negatives were found in an attic: acquired by Kerry Stokes, 800 photos of Australian diggers were bequeathed to the Australian War Memorial.

Remember Me, the Lost Diggers of Vignacourt

The exhibition of the Thuillier photographs collection toured around Australia from November 2012 to January 2015, and was on display at the Australian War Memorial, the Queensland Museum, the State Library of Australia and the State Library of New South Wales. The exhibition will continue travelling around Australia until May 2016.

On this occasion, in July 2014, 9 youth ambassadors from Vignacourt travelled to Australia to meet with the descendants of some of the diggers who were identified in the 800 photographs taken by Louis and Antoinette Thuillier. In partnership with the Alliances françaises, the 9 youth ambassadors from Vignacourt went to Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.

Their roadtrip through Australia was chronicled in a documentary entitled "We are the Diggers " as well as on a blog.

From 21st to 25th April 2015, commemorations in Vignacourt...

• Exhibition "A poppy for a digger" ("Un coquelicot pour un digger")
• Exhibition of photographs taken by the 9 youth ambassadors from Vignacourt chronicling their trip throughout Australia in July 2014
• Permanent exhibition of the Thuillier photographs collection at La Maison des Australiens
• Concert by the "Voices of Birralee", a youth choir from Brisbane