Graffiti show in Saigon

VinGallery will put on an exhibition entitled “Frenemies” featuring the works by street artist and illustrator Kristopher Kotcher.

Kotcher has practiced graffiti and street arts for 12 years and named one of his works as “Frenemy” to explain the hating and loving conflicts when people look at street arts. Frenemy is also the word he uses for his world of characters of “Frenemies.”

Kotcher’s works are influenced by the books and cartoons for children that he loved when he was a child as well as graffiti and American folk arts.

Kotcher will create an exciting mural at the VinGallery space. He will also exhibit some of his digital prints and gouache, ink and watercolor pieces.

The nine-day graffiti and street art exhibition will kick off on June 6 at 6 Le Van Mien Street, Thao Dien, District 2 in HCMC.

Nationally renowned music theorist dies aged 79

Famed music theorist Ho Quang Binh passed away on Sunday in Ha Noi. He was 79.

Born in the central province of Nghe An's Quynh Luu District, he was trained at the Kiev Conservatory and was an active contributor to the Ha Noi Musicians Association.

He worked as a deputy chairman of the Ha Noi Union for Literature and Arts from 2006 and chairman of the Ha Noi Musicians Association from 2010.

He directed valuable music research including The History of Ha Noi's Modern Music in the Early 20th Century and Ha Noi's Songs in the 20th and Early 21st Century, and was also the author of a book titled The History of Viet Nam Ballet and Opera Theatre.

His funeral will be held today in Ha Noi.

The HCMC Fine Arts Museum in District 1 is exhibiting more than 100 photos of the dragons and fairies carved on 40 communal houses in northern Vietnam to provide visitors with better understanding of old architectural and sculptural values of the region.

Le Van Suu, principal of the Vietnam University of Fine Arts, said that communal houses were the soul of villages in the region and thrived from the 15th to 18th centuries. It is a place were the traditional culture, folk arts and festivals, architectural and sculptural arts of the northern people were preserved.

“The exhibition is aimed to preserve the soul of the nation as well as enhance public awareness of conserving both tangible and intangible cultural values of local communal houses” Suu said.

The Vietnam University of Fine Arts had the exhibits photographed from 2012 to 2013 for a project aimed to collect, promote and develop the values of communal houses in Vietnam’s northern delta. The photos depict historical and cultural activities at the communal houses.

Ma Thanh Cao, director of the HCMC Fine Arts Museum, said the exhibition meant significantly to younger generations as it was a journey to old traditional arts.

However, Bui Thi Thanh Mai, a member of the research group of the project, expressed her sadness after the project was implemented as many communal houses looked quite different from their original shapes new after expensive upgrades, or were neglected.

Therefore, Mai said that the project was carried out to call on people to keep the communal houses intact and to respect traditional values.

The exhibition also features documentary films about images of the dragons and fairies that show Vietnamese people’s desire for happiness. Visitors can also watch a 3D film about the distinctive architecture of So Communal House in Hanoi’s Quoc Oai District, which is one the most beautiful communal house in the country.

The exhibition will last until June 23 at the museum, 97 Pho Duc Chinh Street in HCMC’s District 1.

Life on a leaf through eyes of a child

A painting expressing the dream of living on a green leaf won first prize at a nationwide competition for secondary school students.

The Climate Change and You competition aimed to raise awareness about climate change and encourage Vietnamese students to take initiative to tackle the problem.

Entries in two categories, writing and drawing, were required to demonstrate innovative ways to mitigate the effects of climate change.

First prize in the drawing category went to Tran Thi Tinh from the northern province of Son La, while Nguyen Anh Phong from Da Nang City took home the top writing award.

"The green leaf symbolises a green, clean and beautiful life," Tinh said. "If we could live on green leaves, we wouldn't have to worry about pollution and climate change."

Phong, who has spent a lot of time studying the environment, is passionate about finding ways to stop pollution.

"Only one wrong act can have a serious impact on the environment," he said. "We should save everything we can, including paper, electricity and water."

Since it opened in November, the competition received more than 88,000 entries, of which nearly 60,000 were drawings.

Le Trong Hung, vice director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment, said he believed that through this competition, environmentalist messages would get across to lower secondary students nationwide as well as their friends and families.

"Bringing climate change education into schools is an important initiative," he said. "It helps students understand their responsibility and role in protecting the environment and tackling climate change."

Chris Brown, director of the British Council, said he felt happy when the competition received a favourable response from many students.

"The competition creates love for the earth and awareness about the environment among students," he said.

The competition is part of the "Cascading and Embedding Climate Change Education into Wider Secondary Schools across Viet Nam" project implemented by the British

Council Viet Nam, Viet Nam's Ministry of Education and Training and Live&Learn Environmental Education Centre, with the funding support of the British Embassy in Ha Noi.

The project will be implemented nationwide with the focus on the provinces of Nam Dinh, Thanh Hoa and Nghe An.

New translation centre promotes Vietnam’s literature abroad

The Vietnam Writers’ Association (VWA) on May 26 launched a translation centre in Hanoi as part of the association’s efforts to promote the nation’s literature across the globe.

Besides its main task of translating Vietnamese literary works into foreign languages, the centre will help nurture a contingent of translators and relations with foreign writers’ associations, all towards the goal of helping world readers better know about Vietnamese unique culture besides its heroic wars for national independence and freedom, said VWA Chairman poet Huu Thinh.

VWA Vice Chairman poet Nguyen Quang Thieu is the director of the centre.

“Childhood world” fair to entertain kids

A childhood world fair for children will kick start in Hanoi on May 29 in anticipation of International Children’s Day (June 1).

Turning into the 17th year, the event is long awaited by kids given its diverse entertainment programmes, such as circus performances, comedies, a painting exhibition, an Aerobic contest, and games.

“I love history” club will launch activities to help kids enthusiastically learn about the national history and defence cause.

The annual event will be held at the Vietnam Exhibition Center for Culture and Arts.

June has been selected as the national month of action for children’s health, aiming to raise public awareness of child care and limit injuries among children.

What are the differences between Vietnamese and American women?

A Vietnamese writer pointed out many differences between Vietnamese and American women in an exchange held at the Vietnam Women's Museum in Hanoi on Wednesday.

The event, in which Vietnamese female writer Phan Viet talked about the differences in terms of career paths and mindsets, was organized on the occasion of the publication of her new book, “Xuyen My” (Journey Through America).

“I did not know how to make up and only focused on studying when I was in Vietnam,” the author shared. “I only knew the feeling of being a woman after getting married and going abroad. Therefore, I have no idea how to be a Vietnamese woman,” she added.

Being a woman in America is much easier, Viet asserted, saying she could spend hours talking with men about numerous social problems that women often care, a thing which is rarely seen in Vietnam.

“In America, nobody asked me if I got married or had any children or not. I was already divorced but no one knew. I did not speak out and they would never ask me as it belongs to one’s private life. However, those are always the top questions everybody asks in Vietnam,” Viet said.

On the other hand, according to an American female student attending the exchange, Vietnamese women are healthier than their American peers as she saw most of the people rowing boats on the Yen stream, which leads to the well-known Huong (Perfume) Pagoda in the southwest of Hanoi, are women, which she has never seen in the U.S.

Another participant stated that the role of women in Vietnam is always important as they often take care of children and have a great impact on the decisions made in their family. However, they often choose to support their spouses’ careers, she added.

The event was organized by Viet and 13 American students and lecturers from the University of South Carolina, who are all taking part in social work.

“Xuyen My” is a sequel to Viet’s memoir “Bat Hanh La Mot Tai San” (Misfortune Is an Asset), talking about the feelings and experiences after the breakdown of her marriage.

Hanoi and HCMC to host European-Vietnamese Documentary Film Fest

The 6th annual European-Vietnamese Documentary Film Festival will be organized in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City next month.

The event, to be held by EUNIC - the network of the European cultural institutes and embassies, in collaboration with the National Film Studio for Documentary and Science Film Vietnam, will feature documentaries made by filmmakers from Denmark, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Austria, Poland, Sweden, Spain and Vietnam.

The films include “When you cannot overcome yourself” and “Tsunami, earthquake – Immeasurable disasters” from Vietnam, “Dreams of a life” from the UK, “Boleslaw Matuszewski – The unknown pioneer of cinematography” from Poland, “The Human Scale” from Denmark and many more. Each screening will show a Vietnamese film and a European work.

The festival will dedicate one day to feature a series of documentaries from Southeast Asian countries, including “Where I Go” from Cambodia, “Behind The Screen” from Myanmar and “Another Color TV" from Indonesia.

Within the framework of the festival, workshops will also take place at the Goethe-Institut in Hanoi.

The festival will be held in Hanoi from June 4 to 12 at the National Studio for Documentary and Scientific Film at 465 Hoang Hoa Tham Street in Ba Dinh District and in HCMC from June 21 to 29 at Hoa Sen University at 8 Nguyen Van Trang Street in District 1.

More in formation about teh screening schedule can by found at www.goethe.de

Photo exhibit captures attitudes of the young towards the East Sea

A group of young people have compiled a collection of photographs showing a perspective of the East Sea through their eyes in order to draw attention to sovereignty issues.

The photos were selected from a collection taken from well-known Vietnamese beaches in Khanh Hoa and Phu Yen provinces, such as Dai Lanh, Hon Nua, Nam Du, Van Phong Bay and Phu Quy Island.

The collection is comprised 27 colour photos, all of which show a patriotic love for Vietnam's waters. The works have attracted much attention from young people, who are equally united in their desire to preserve and protect the territory of their country.

VNN/VNS/ND/SGT/VIR