Danish aid supports art projects in VN

Eight new contemporary art projects of national and foreign artists in Vietnam will get US$100,000 financial support from the Danish Vietnamese Cultural Development and Exchange Fund (CDEF) in late 2013.

The information was released by Danish Ambassador to Vietnam John Nielsen at a press conference on November 27.

Accordingly, the new projects are related to dance, visual art, music and multimedia.

CDEF is part of the cultural development programme between Vietnam and Denmark, with its sponsorship money worth US$1 million in five years (2011-2015).

John Nielsen said CDEF supports high- standard projects in various fields of contemporary art.

It had so far sponsored some art projects at a total cost of US$500,000.

The Danish Ambassador expressed his hope CDEF will fund more projects in different regions of the country not only in Hanoi, Hue, Danang and Ho Chi Minh City.

The organizing board asked Vietnamese contemporary artists to apply for sponsorship before the deadline set for late March 2014.

Experts to introduce, discuss influential VN artist

To Ngoc Van's Woman by a Lily.

A talk on one of Viet Nam's most influential 20th century painters, To Ngoc Van (1906-1954) will be held at L'Espace early next month.

The event will feature an introduction to the painter's works by Professor Chu Hao, while Thai collector Tira Vanictheeranont will talk about how he came to collect hundreds of paintings and sketches by Van. Vanicthreeranont will also speak about a book about the noted painter's sketches that will be published soon.

Artist Phan Cam Thuong, who has already published a book on the painter's works called To Ngoc Van – Tam Guong Phan Chieu Xa Hoi Viet Nam 1906-1954 (To Ngoc Van – A Mirror Reflecting Vietnamese Society in 1906-1954), will speak about his research into his mentor's works.

Van graduated from the Indochine Fine Arts College in 1931. In 1932, his silk painting titled The Letter was awarded the honorary certificate by the French Painters Association and awarded the gold medal at the Colony Exhibition in Paris. In 1935, he taught drawing in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Van is particularly famous for his silk paintings of women. More notable among them are: Thieu Nu Ben Hoa Hue (Woman by a Lily), Hai Thieu Nu va Em Be (Two Women and a Little Girl) and Thieu Nu Voi Hoa Sen (Women by a Lotus).

The talk will take place at 2pm, December 6 at L'Espace, 24 Trang Tien Street.

Sofitel Metropole lights up the festive season

To kick off the holiday season, the Sofitel Metropole Legend Hanoi will host an official Christmas Lights Ceremony. Alongside a 15m tree that will be lit up by thousands of glittering lights, a stage will be set for puppetry and Christmas carols performed by a chorus of visually-impaired children.

Children from the Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam are invited to attend the event, which will also feature a Christmas feast.

In addition, the hotel will also have a display of Christmas trees decorated by 11 leading Vietnamese artists. Visitors will get the chance to vote for their favourite Christmas tree with an award then presented to the artist.

US-based Vietnamese composer, improviser, teacher and electronic musician Nguyen Xinh Xo will present a night of electro-acoustic music at Manzi Art Space in Ha Noi tomorrow.

Most of his works aim to re-contextualise the essence of traditional instruments through spectral processing and interactive manipulation of the acoustic sound by computer, as well as to explore the transformation of traditional music through the contemporary and experimental medium. His main interest and passion is to experiment with new sounds and new techniques that are able to merge the old with the new, the tradition with the contemporary, while mending the gap between them sonically and musically.

His compositions have been performed in the US, Canada, Argentina, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, Italy, France and the Netherlands.

His performance at Manzi will start at 8pm. Free entry but registration at manzihanoi@gmail.com before 3pm today is required.

FVH shows visitors bronze village

The Friends of Viet Nam Heritage (FVH) on Saturday will host an English-speaking tour to the Ngu Xa Bronze Casting Village and Quan Thanh Temple.

The first part, taking place from 9-12pm, will introduce bronze casting and its history in northern Viet Nam. A visit to a "kitchen" foundry as well as the country's largest single bronze statue in the village are included.

After one hour for lunch and refreshments, the afternoon tour will start from 1pm. Visitors will discover the Quan Thanh Taoist Temple and its 350-year-old bronze statue of Tran Vu – Ha Noi's Protector of the North.

Anyone interested in the tour can contact Roman at FVH.CityWalks.English@gmail.com.

Fundraising concert helps Haiyan victims

A fundraising concert for victims of typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines will be held at La Fenetre Soleil in District 1 on November 30.

The show includes Filipino, French, Swedish and Vietnamese DJs, as well as beatboxers and musicians like Sitti Gomez, Konka, Glaser and Global B.

Surviving Swirls, a collection of paintings themed for Haiyan victims by Filipino painter Joan Manalang, will also be displayed at the event.

Donations begin at VND100,000. All proceeds will go to UNICEF Philippines typhoon funds.

The concert will begin at 8pm at 44 Ly Tu Trong Street in District 1.

Rock bands roll into Cargo Bar

Australian rock and roll band Reguritator will share the stage with multi-national electronic rock band Bonaparte from Berlin in a live concert at Cargo Bar on Sunday.

Formed in 1993, Reguritator won the Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards for the Best Album of 1998.

Bonaparte is led by Swiss songwriter Tobias Junt and includes members from other countries like Germany, France, Mexico and Sweden. It has received several prizes from Germany, Switzerland and Russia.

The performance will be at 7.30pm at 7 Nguyen Tat Thanh Street.

For tickets, please visit www.ticketbox.vn.

VN poster art shown in HCM City

An entirely new experience of Vietnamese poster art is now available in the heart of HCM City's downtown.

The exhibition captures the stunning range and vibrancy of Vietnamese poster art as it was originally created during the early 1960s through to the late 70s.

Many of the works on display, chosen from more than 1,000 original works from the largest collection of its kind in the world, have rarely been viewed in decades and have never been exhibited earlier. The selections have been faithfully reproduced and presented to international gallery standards. The prints are virtually inseparable from the original, and provide a memorable viewing experience.

The prints are produced in numbered open editions, and are available at the gallery or on-line at www.dogmacollection.com.

The gallery is located at 8a/9c1 Thai Van Lung Street, District 1.

Seminar burnishes image of chefs

The important role that a chef plays other than cooking tasty food was emphasised at a seminar held in HCM City on Tuesday.

Speakers at the first HORECA (hotels, restaurants and catering services) seminar in the city remarked that those outside the catering industry are usually not aware of a chef's additional responsibilities. It is important to raise this awareness, they said.

They noted that being a good chef is not just about cooking tasty food, but ensuring that it is nutritious, safe and hygienic, as well as cost-saving for business owners.

At the seminar, hundreds of chefs discussed and shared experiences about food preservation, processing and other issues of common interest.

They said such seminars would help promote the chef's image in society as well as maintain and develop Vietnamese gastronomy.

Tourism week to celebrate Central Highlands culture

The Lam Dong Culture and Tourism 2013 Week will be in Da Lat City from December 27-31.

The event, which will celebrate the 120th anniversary of the city, will also feature the famous annual Da Lat Flower Festival. A carnival dedicated to flowers and horticulture – a key economic sector of the region – will begin the flower fest. Alongside the display of floral installations, several flowers that cannot be found anywhere else in country will be on display.

The Culture and Tourism Week will also include an art and music performance highlighting the diverse culture of ethnic minority groups living in the Central Highlands region.

An exhibition on the natural beauty and tourist attractions of Da Lat as well as the region will also be part of the celebration.

Vo Ngoc Hiep, chairman of the Da Lat People's Committee, has said his administration has called on all accommodation suppliers not to increase their room rates and to make these public so that visitors do not feel cheated.

Several infrastructure facilities in the city have been upgraded for the for the celebration, officials said.

Seminar on Literature and Arts opens in HCM City

A seminar themed ‘Striving to creating more valuable Literature and Artworks-Reality and Solutions’ was held in Ho Chi Minh City on November 27.

The seminar aims to focus on problems in fields of theory and criticism, literature, fine arts, movies, stage, and performances.

Literature and Arts have seen strong changes with a large number of artworks by talented people in last 15 years. However this sector has only a small number of high quality works and great talents, said experts.

Delegates have discussed and analyzed the current situation of artistic composition, and launched measures to raise the quality of artistic works to meet the demand of art lovers.

The seminar held by the Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Art will end on November 28.

Source: VNA/VNS/SGT/SGGP/Dantri