Talk: Thất/lạc
02 pm – 04 pm, Fri 29 Nov 2024
Alpha Art Station
200 Lý Tự Trọng, D.1, HCMC
Registration link
Language: English
From Vietnam Festival of Creativity & Design:
The talk “Thất/lạc”, organised by the Digital Humanities Lab (DHLab@Fulbright) of Fulbright University Vietnam, explores the complex relationship between regeneration and the importance of loss, particularly in the context of Vietnam’s colonial history and war from the late 1800s through the 1900s. Throughout its history, Vietnam has experienced significant cultural loss due to colonisation, war, and displacement, leading to the disappearance of important works of art, literature, and historical artifacts. These losses have created gaps in the nation’s cultural memory, but this talk emphasizes that loss itself – “thất” – is not merely a void to be filled, but a space that offers the possibility of recreation and joy.
The concept of “lạc” includes multiple dimensions in this discussion:
Lệch-lạc (Deviation and Speculation): Loss can lead us astray, leaving us with uncertainties and conjectures about what has been lost. This sense of lạc reflects the confusion and disorientation that often accompany the reconfiguration of damaged cultural artifacts and incomplete memories.
Mạch-lạc (Cohering Past and Present): In our effort to recover from loss, we create our own narratives, filling in what’s missing and connecting the past with the present through speculation and reflection. This process involves reinterpreting historical narratives and cultural identities, and lạc is the imaginary string that we use to weave together what remains with what has been lost.
Hoan-lạc (Joy of Creation): Finally, the joy of lạc embodies the fulfillment that comes from regenerating from loss. It acknowledges that through the exploration of loss and the reconciliation of the past with the present, new forms of expression and narrative can emerge.
By integrating Digital Humanities methodologies such as digital archives and databases, virtual reconstruction and visualisation using 3D and VR, and AI-powered stimulations, Thất/lạc opens up a broader conversation about how digital technology can be used not only to restore but to preserve what has been lost and what could be regenerated from the voids in Vietnam’s cultural memory.
This interactive talk and networking event is designed to share experiences and practices related to “regeneration”, the theme of Vietnam Festival of Creativity & Design this year, in developing cultural heritage, community engagement and positive, sustainable impacts on the environment.
Organiser:/em>
The Fulbright Digital Humanities Lab (DHLab@Fulbright) is a student-led experimental group affiliated with the Vietnam Studies Center at Fulbright University Vietnam. DHLab@Fulbright focuses on preserving and developing humanistic values through digital technology by collaborating to create networking between professors, researchers, students, and enthusiasts in this field. DHLab@Fulbright is empowered to organise events, seminars, research, and projects to bring Vietnam’s digital humanities issues to the world, opening opportunities for the humanities, providing digital tools and methods for analysing culture, history, language and literature.
Speakers:
Richard Streitmatter Tran – Professor of Art and Media Studies, Fulbright University Vietnam graduated from Massachusetts College of Art and and has held various academic roles at Harvard, RMIT Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City University of Fine Arts. He also founded the art space DIA PROJECTS, which organizes exhibitions and artist residencies. He currently focuses on material research and primarily works through sculpture, painting, installation, and drawing, with his work exhibited internationally, represented by de Sarthe Gallery (Hong Kong) and Vin Gallery (Ho Chi Minh City).
Dr. Vũ Minh Hoàng – Lecturer in the Department of History and Vietnamese Studies at Fulbright University Vietnam, as well as a Visiting Fellow at the Weatherhead East Asia Institute and Adjunct Lecturer in History at Columbia University. His research focuses on the history of 20th-century Vietnamese diplomacy, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, with themes such as security, economics, identity, and genocide. He also promotes academic and practical cooperation between Columbia University and Fulbright University Vietnam, notably the Digitizing Vietnam Project funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Vietnam Festival of Creativity & Design 2024 is organised by RMIT University Vietnam in collaboration with Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts Studies (VICAS). Hexagon and Viral Town serve as event partners, alongside a diverse array of individuals, groups, organisations, enterprises in the creative industries, with Behalf by Pencil as the creative partner and Hanoi Grapevine as the media partner.
Follow updates on event’s page.
![]() | Vietnam Festival of Creativity & Design Website YouTube |