VietNamNet Bridge – There will be a frenzy of flowers at Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi next month, as craftsmen take over the centre with their artistic and floral creations. The five-day event Flower Street Festival – Hanoi 2009, will welcome famous artisans and craftsmen from Hanoi’s traditional villages to present their artwork made from hundreds of thousands of flowers, as well as their traditional products. The five-day event Flower Street Festival – Hanoi 2009, will welcome famous artisans and craftsmen from Hanoi’s traditional villages to present their artwork made from hundreds of thousands of flowers, as well as their traditional products. From December 31 to January 4, the festival will take over a 600m-long stretch of road, from the intersection of Dinh Tien Hoang-Hang Bai-Trang Tien-Hang Khay to Ba Kieu Temple alongside Hoan Kiem Lake. The colourful flower beds will be designed by some of Hanoi’s most famous florists, including Mai Hanh, Duc Hai and Nguyen Ba Muu. The fresh flowers will be accompanied by a range of materials, including silk and wood. Artisans from Chuong village-a famous conical hat-making village – will present an installation of conical hats in different sizes, while artisans from the fan-making Chang Son village will display a massive fan, measuring 9m wide and 4.5m high. Artisan Lan Tuyen will provide a warm welcome to the festival grounds, creating a peach-blossom-shaped gate from bamboo tape fans. Typical old quarter mossy-roof houses will be replicated by artisans Nguyen Manh Tuan from Bat Trang pottery village, while massive lotus-shaped lanterns will also adorn the lake. “Flower beds and art installations will be in harmony to ensure that this will be the most stunning festival Hanoi has ever seen,” said flower artisan Nguyen Manh Hung, the main designer of the festival’s flower decorations. Hung will also impress tourists with ao dai (traditional dress) collection made from rattan, silk flowers, dried flowers and leaves. According to deputy director of Hanoi’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Department Nguyen Khac Loi, the week is not just about livening up the city’s scenery, but is also a meaningful cultural activity to welcome the New Year. “The festival is an event to present the golden skills of Ha Noi’s artists and to express the cultural quintessence of the 1,000-year-old capital,” he said. “We expect to get as much experience as possible from this year’s festival to plan a flower festival next year – the year of the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi,” said one the festival’s organisers Nguyen Thi Hoa. Unfortunately, recent flooding in Hanoi has destroyed most of the city’s flower fields, so the festival will have to present flowers from neighbouring provinces and from the “land of flowers“ in Da Lat. “That is our biggest regret, that we can’t use flowers from Hanoi for a festival taking place in Hanoi,” she said. The festival’s organiser, Hanoi-based DC Music and Entertainment, will spend around 2 billion VND (117,000 USD) on the festival. (Source: VNA)

Women on the field by Van Duong Thanh. VietNamNet Bridge – “Inspiration from Bronze Drum” is the name of an exhibition taking place from November 27-30 by Vietnamese Swedish painter Van Duong Thanh in Hanoi. The exhibition features 20 large-sized paintings, many of which are inspired by patterns found on Dong Son bronze drums at the Dong Son Drum restaurant at 1 Nguyen Dang Ninh, Hanoi. Among these paintings, many have never been displayed, including Moonlight over Small Alley, Sunlight on Spring Field, O Quan Chuong in Spring, Wild Flowers in Wind, and The Buddhist and Daisies. The exhibition is being held with the cooperation between the artist and Dong Son Restaurant, aiming to introduce painting art to the public. Van Duong Thanh was born in Phu Yen Province and studied painting for twelve years during the difficult times of the American war in Vietnam. She has lived in Sweden since 1988, and has since returned to Vietnam many times to study its people, cultures and landscapes. Through her paintings, viewers can appreciate the Vietnamese spirit, soul, and the beauty of nature because Thanh's works use tranquil oils and lacquers to explore every corner of the country. Aside from many exhibitions at home, Thanh has staged over 65 solo exhibitions in foreign countries like France, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany, the United States and Sweden. Through these exhibitions, she has brought Vietnamese art to the outside world. With her great contribution to Vietnamese fine art, Thanh was honored as an ambassador of Vietnamese culture in Sweden for her effort to strengthen the relationship between the two countries. She is one of the most recognized female artists in Asia. She is the youngest painter to have a painting bought for display at the Vietnam Art Museum: White Daisy, which she painted at the age of 20. She mostly leans towards an expressive, semi-abstract style with bright colors. She has conceived and finished over 1,500 paintings which mainly feature Vietnam's people and the beauty of nature. (Source: TP, SGT)

Youth Theatre to offer free shows for students

The Hanoi-based Youth Theatre has announced it will take “Stereo Man”, a drama using body-language, to 20 universities in southern Vietnam.

“Stereo Man” describes every aspect of men, both visible things and their secrets. It also features social issues like HIV/AIDS, homosexuality, and others.

Last year, with the assistance of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) and the Rockefeller Foundation, the Youth Theatre put on free shows of Stereo Man for students at eight universities and colleges in Hanoi and others in northern Vietnam.

This year, with the assistance of the Ford Foundation, the theatre will continue to perform “Stereo Man” at 20 universities and colleges in southern and central provinces.

(Source: HNM)

FIAP exhibition to present 120 photos by senior photographers

From December 11-18, an exhibition of 120 photos by 14 masters of photography of the International Federation of Photographic Art (FIAP) will be held at the Vietnam Art Museum in Hanoi.

In its nearly 60 years, FIAP has presented the title Master of FIAP (M.FIAP) to over 100 photographers throughout the whole world. Vietnam, which has been a member of FIAP for 17 years, has submitted two photographers from HCM City for consideration for this title but they have not been accepted yet.

During the exhibition, some photographers whose works are introduced at the exhibition will come to Vietnam to take photos of Ha Long Bay and talk with Vietnamese audiences at the French Cultural Centre, 24 Trang Tien, Hanoi.

(Source: HNM)

Vietnam-Korea food festival 2008

The event will be held at the stadium of the Hanoi Foreign Studies University from November 28-29 to celebrate the 16^th anniversary of Vietnam-Republic of Korea diplomatic ties and mark RoK’s investment in Vietnam.

According to the RoK Embassy in Vietnam, RoK now has the largest number of projects in Vietnam, totalling $15.8 billion. Two-way trade revenue between the two countries this year is estimated to exceed $10 billion.

During the exhibition, Vietnamese visitors will have a chance to taste Korean cuisine, play Korean folk games, and participate in a singing contest in Korean and Vietnamese.

The festival is jointly organised by the RoK Embassy in Vietnam, the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Hanoi Foreign Studies University, under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Association in Vietnam.

(Source: HNM)

Int’l children draw for “Pottery Road”

The Tan Hanoi Art Company has combined with the UN International School (UNIS) to organise a drawing event, under which nearly 200 international students at UNIS drew paintings for the “Pottery Road” project.

This announcement was posted on the UNIS’ website: “As a school, UNIS has been invited to be part of the Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural Project which will leave a lasting impression of UNIS students in Hanoi for the future generations to enjoy. The mural is being created in celebration of Hanoi’s 1000th Anniversary. This will be UNIS’s gift to Hanoi”.

Students between the ages of 3-15 drew paintings in water-colours, pencils, felt pens, etc. They all wanted to show something special from their countries. Hanako Inui, 14, from Japan, drew cherry blossoms on the Japanese flag. Ani Pham (Vietnamese-American), 8, drew a spoon with a huge cherry, a public artwork in Minneapolis city. Samuel Lewis (Australia), 14, depicted a koala climbing a tree. Stephanie (New Zealand), 6, painted a big kiwi bird while Louie Beardow (UK), 6, drew Big Ben, a two-storey bus, and a king with a crown who is wearing a jersey of Manchester United football club.

The “Pottery Road” project is being implemented on the Yen Phu dike, and witnessing the participation of Vietnamese and international painters and sculptors. In addition, 100 paintings by Vietnamese children and 100 by students from UNIS will be selected for the project.

(Source: HNM)