(VOVWORLD) - “Future of Tradition” is a project founded by a group of young artists who wish to preserve and sustainably promote Vietnam’s traditional values. “Open-Studio: Why Stand?” is a look behind the curtain of the processes of 10 young artists who participated in the second phase of the project. VOV’s Culture looks at the future of Vietnam’s unique traditions through the lens of this project.
"They are all very young and talented artists who breath new air into tradition and thus determine the future of those traditions. Traditions are something that should never be left to stand still. They have developed through thousands of years and constantly evolve to suit the contemporary lifestyle," said the project’s advisor, musician Do Xuan Son.
Son, who is passionate about experimental music, said the future of tradition will come to life through the new works of young artists. It will be a continuous and transformative process which suits modern life. What young artists are doing now is to redefine traditions through their work, added Son.
 Photo: Hanoigrapevine.com |
Young painter Ngo Thu Huong brought to the project her video clip entitled “Pieces of conversation” which was screened on silk and included dialogues quoted from works about war in combination with excerpts from the Vietnamese popular opera “The tale of Lady Thi Kinh”. Her work raises questions about happiness through the views of Vietnamese women in different eras.
"During the process of making this piece, my views about tradition changed a lot. I used to think of tradition as something narrow-minded, fixed and immovable. But now I think I can use something of the old character to create new works of my own," said Huong.
Artist Tuan Ni joined the project with a modern piece of reformed theatre he created with the application of minimalism, and through which he makes forecasts about the future of Vietnam’s reformed theatre.
"I created something new from the original tune of reformed theatre, through just a 5-second piece of music which I rearranged by adjusting its rhythm," said Tuan Ni.
Ha Thuy Hang, Head of the “Future of Tradition” project, said: "I’d love to promote Vietnam’s rich traditions to the next level by first understanding them thoroughly. Connecting with tradition is very important. Artists who want to find their origin have to come back to traditional and indigenous culture to reflect, reconnect and then nurture what sprouts."