Joint Swedish-Vietnamese art exhibition in Hanoi

About 30 Swedish and Vietnamese artists explore the meaning of identity in an exhibition that opened in Hanoi on Friday. Paintings, photos, video and art installations are on display at the show, titled What is Identity. It is being hosted by the Viet Nam College of Fine Arts and the Swedish Umea Fine Arts Academy.
This will be the first time that the concept of ban sac (identity) has been explored by artists for an exhibition in Viet Nam. The show gave artists the opportunity to express their beliefs about identity through a diverse range of mediums. Phan Tu Quynh created Thieu Nu Ben Hoa Loa Ken (The Girl with the Lily) because she likes to portray her surroundings in a free environment.
“To me, art is there to beautify our mind,” Quynh said.
Another art installation using video and photos, Birds of Passage, was created by artists Ylva Landoff Lindberg and Radoslaw Stypczynski in 2008. They studied at the Viet Nam College of Fine Arts in Ha Noi for a year thanks to a 2005-09 project between Viet Nam and Sweden.
“My works are close to the field of documentary. They are often presented as an installation where video, sound, photo and objects interact to embrace the visitor,” said Lindberg.
Other works at the exhibition include installation Fingerprint by Le Tran Hau Anh; photo If I Die Now by Johan Aija; video art and animation Vietnamese Doll by Dao Nguyen Vu; a collection of five paintings Dualistic Fruit by Johan Hallberg and sound installation Language in a Play by Emma-Lina Ericsson.
“I’m sure we will all enjoy the art works and I hope that the exhibition – as cultural expressions should always do – will stimulate further discussions between friends and colleagues,” said Rolf Berman, Swedish ambassador.The exhibition will run till June 12 at 42 Yet Kieu Street, Hanoi


 

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