The Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts has been illuminated at night following the launch of a lighting project supported by the city of Lyon, France on October 18.

The Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts is illuminated at night.

In his remarks at the launching ceremony, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le Thanh Liem said Lyon has been involved in the lighting of various iconic buildings in HCM City, such as Nha Rong Wharf in 1997, Ho Chi Minh City Hall in 2004, Sai Gon Opera House in 2008 and Saigon Central Post Office in 2013.

Following these projects’ success, the lighting of the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts is another illustration of the effective cooperation between the Vietnamese southern hub and Lyon, he noted.

He expected such projects will be expanded to more local buildings to give the city an urban facelift and that the museum will attract more visitors both thanks to the lighting.

Lyon and HCM City have links in multiple fields, including healthcare, culture and education, said Vice President of Lyon Max Vincent. The two cities have worked together in a number of lighting projects in HCM City, he added.

The project has been completed in 4 weeks, using energy-saving technology. It will light up the museum from 6:00pm – 11:00pm every day.

Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts, the largest art museum of HCM City, is located at 97A Pho Duc Chinh St., District 1, the city’s downtown. Its main building was constructed as a mansion for a Chinese family during colonial times. After the country reunited, it was reformed into a museum in 1987 and officially opened in 1991.

The museum houses a collection featuring Vietnamese art works in sculpture, oil, silk painting and lacquer painting, as well as traditional styles like woodcut painting. –VNA