A special exhibition of works by four young graphic designers, newly graduates of the London College for Design and Fashion (LCDF), opens in Hanoi today.

Cover of the book Logolepsy by Dang Minh Nguyet.

All four designers use graphics to express themselves and seek people’s understanding through their works.

Ho Nguyen Hai Dang presents Saigon, Saigon, a multi-media project that gives the audience an immersive experience of old Sai Gon (HCM City). “Utilising modern techniques, I want to explore how to breathe new life to the past and pay tribute to the city I love so dearly,” said Dang.

“I will show people a vintage Sai Gon, a world of culture, music, and lifestyle, with a distinctive visual style all its own.”

Dang Minh Nguyet has chosen to make a “word book” called Logolepsy, which means an obsession with words. It’s a book about unusual and rare words, some short and others quite long, carrying wide meanings. There are words that could be impossible to translate into other languages, and words that are names for things that one would not even know there was a word for.

“The main reason I chose this project is because I’m not a talkative person. I usually talk or even text in a very short way, and I like things that have a big meanings behind or no one knows about,” she said.

“The second reason is there are not a lot of different types of ‘word books’ except the dictionary, so I want to make something new, and also to challenge myself to do something I had never done before.”

Nguyen Minh Y discovers herself through a graphic work called Anxiety. Based on her experience of living with anxiety, she wants to spread the awareness among those who do not know exactly what an anxiety disorder is. She uses a series of fun illustrations, posters and postcards to describe what anxiety feels like in a creative way, to encourage those who fight against anxiety, and to seek support.

Pham Phuong Thao delves into his interest in cuisine with an illustration project that describes some specific traditional foods in Hanoi.

Phoở (noodle soup) has become famous worldwide and is loved by people in many countries. The shape of the noodle has influenced key visuals in Thao’s project called: “Have you eaten?” All the illustrations are made with continuous lines of a pho thread.

“The project is my effort to show appreciation for my hometown and hopefully make national and international folks love Hanoian cuisine as much as I do,” said Thao.

The exhibition, open to the public but of particular interest to young and aspiring designers, will remain open until October 1 at LCDF, 98 To  Ngoc Van Street, Hanoi.

Experts like Hoang Dao Hiep, CEO of advertising company Saatchi & Saatchi Vietnam and Richard Child, lecturer of Graphic Design at LCDF will host talks about graphic design and its role in brand communication. 

VNS