Exhibition “Nhà Tây Transforms”

Opening: Thu 10 Oct, 6 pm
Exhibition: 10 – 29 Oct 2013
Manzi Art Space

From Manzi and Art Vietnam:

Manzi art space, in collaboration with Art Vietnam Gallery and Hanoi Grapevine is proud to present ‘Nha Tay Transforms’ featuring the latest works of artist scholars, Nguyen The Son and Tran Hau Yen The.

Nguyen The Son, the quintessential thinking man’s artist, continues his exploration of the physical and moral landscape of Hanoi as it transforms and mutates into the 21st Century. Ever a keen observer of not only the physical adaptations to this rapid change, Son considers the impact on the moral values and sense of community incurred in the race to modernize.

In his previous body of work, Nha Mat Pho (‘Houses facing the street’), Son photographs traditional Vietnamese tube houses considered in the 19th century a symbol of the pinnacle of success for the Vietnamese. Utilizing his unique method of “photo –relievo”, layers of photographs create a 3 dimensional structure that physically resembles the layers of transformation the houses have gone through over the years.

As the houses morph and are altered to fit the ever evolving needs of the inhabitants, they provide a mirrored reflection of the social, moral and physical landscape of the society itself.

As the Nha Mat Pho series addressed the social issues of the rampant materialism of the society, the discrepancy of wealth between the rich and the poor, and the imposing Western commoditization of the people, Son’s current body of work, Nha Tay Transforms follows suit.

In this latest series, Son continues his research of the transformations of the urban landscapes. These Nha Tay’s, (Western Villa) refer to the beautiful, spacious villas that were built by the French and represent all things beautiful, novel and exotic coming from a Western country. This blending of the architectural styles of East and West did indeed create a highly coveted way of living and this has continued to this day.

However as the city has expanded and developed, these houses are being adapted and transformed just as were the prestigious Nha Mat Pho. Additional structures, tin roofs, advertising billboards and all manner of extemporaneous additions are layered onto the original structure creating a haphazard structure of chaotic living.

Fellow artist, researcher Yen The adds yet another historical layer to this discovery of the life of the Nha Tay.
Following the maps and drawings of the French intellectual Henri Oger, who in 1908-1909 created 4,577 drawings of every aspect of the lives of the inhabitants, Yen The creates his own layer of analysis of the lifestyle of the inhabitants and the original façade of the villa. Through his research Yen The recreates the original details of the house and his drawings on Vietnamese Do paper compliment Son’s 3D works as an overlay portraying how the house has been transformed over the years.

This uncovering and retracing of the owners memories proved to be an emotional journey for the artist for as he states, “My drawings proved to be much more difficult than those executed by Henri Ogre, for it was not simply a work of taking notes or retracing an actual stage of life. It was actually similar to a long, poignant process of therapy for someone who has lost his memory after a tragic accident.”

Once again Nguyen the Son and his fellow researcher Yen The leave the viewer alone with their perceptions of how life is transformed by progress as it is named, and the repercussions of this modernity upon society.

Nguyễn Thế Sơn

Born in Hanoi in 1978, known as one of the most important contemporary artists in Vietnam, Son got his Master’s degree in Fine Art Photography at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing in 2012. Apart from his solo exhibitions “Head wash”(2005), “High Above” (2007) and “New higher Level” (2009), ‘The road home is far away‘(2011), Houses facing the street’ (2012), Son’s work has been shown in numerous group exhibitions in Vietnam and China from 2000 until today.

Trần Hậu Yên Thế

Born in Hanoi in 1970, Tran Hau Yen The got his master’s degree at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing in 2004. He now is working at the Vietnam Fine Art University as a fine art researcher and a teacher.
In 1999, The did his first solo exhibition entitled ‘My Name Is’ at the Fine Art School and since then, he took part in different group shows including: ‘Emergency Room’ (2009), ‘The implicit Story’ (2008), ‘Vac & Xom’ (2005), ‘Within the Room’ (2005).

“‘Nha Tay Transforms’ is brought to you by the Prince Claus Fund for Culture & Development.

Manzi Art Space 14 Phan Huy Ich, Hanoi