KVT misses out

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It’s not fair!

You get back from a two week business trip and find that you’ve missed out on…

…an upmarket Australian pecussion extravaganza that had its initial roots in that great Oz conceit of larikanism and latter day boganism (my Oz mates helped out on this definition and funny words), RATATAT-ing at a groovy, moovy headbanger across the dyke, a Germanic version of being seen by others , a performing party in lane 10 Nghi Tam,  a rock opera and symphony at Nha Hat Lon, a tenor and guitar a la Francaise and the one I didn’t want to miss, Oanh Phi Phi’s open studio (she’s well on the way to being Vietnam’s hottest art property and I’d advise you to get in before the market forces up her prices). Not forgetting the symphony orchestra from Montana (minus Hannah thank goodness) and an installation in reverse in the suburbs.Bowled over by Oger

Anyway, I walked into L’Espace  yesterday to get a couple of tickets to next week’s contemporary dance program and I was bowled over by the installation based on drawings of daily life in Hanoi and its environs circa 1908. The installation was fabulous (I think it closed June 3) and included huge acetate transparencies over the plate glassss front windows and an immense hollow rectangle that dominated the interior. Cylindrical lantern drawings hung as light fixtures and a video projected onto a wall. As if that wasn’t  enough for the historical buff the walls were strewn with copies of the drawings. All installation artists should have seen this one. (ed.: including me – but unfortunately Hanoi Grapevine missed this one – it happens sometimes…)

The drawings are going to be part of a second edition of a book being published by the Nha Nam Publishing House for the Ecole Francaise D’Extreme Orient in Ha Hoi. the drawings exhibited are 100 of 4,000 painted for  and collected by  Henri Oger during his 2 year military service stint in the colonies in 1908 -1909.The original edition was on Do paper and titled ‘Technique Du Peuple Annamite’ and was a comprehensive inventory of local industry and commerce at that time.

Contact L’Espace if you are interested in a copy as I think it will be popular, if expensive.

Eloquently eloquent.

Also I was lucky to discover that a flute and piano recital was on in the L’Espace auditorium that night and at 50 000 VND a ticket who can resist good music….and when I heard it the music was so eloquent that I’d pay hundreds for a repeat. Flautist Clement Dufour and pianist Tristan Pfaff (neither of whom looked old enough to be playing so beautifully and professionally ) soothed and astounded us with  Schubert, tantalized with Faure and then completely knocked our socks off with a selection by Argentinian composer Astor Piazzola (1921-1992) famous for his neuvo tango compositions. Oh such eloquent music and  so eloquently played by both artists…. the bordello and café pieces were really moving

I guess it’s back to saying….Where else but in Hanoi!!!?