Travel, Photography, and Fashion
Alongside artistic photography, I received nearly six years of training at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture, specializing in landscape architecture. There are many differences in how I perceive myself between the role of an artist and the role of a landscape architect, a planner. Over the years, in addition to creating art, my colleagues and I have also thought a lot about a broader perspective in which photography is a part of tourism. This is part of a series of experiences that go beyond simply taking pictures.
During a visit to a creative and design festival in France, I took many notes. In a complex system of connections between guest transportation, accommodation, attractions, art experiences, relaxation amidst the scenery, competitions and workshops, culinary experiences… one key element that stuck with me was the joy of the journey. Even when the artworks had a dark undertone, when placed within the overall context of the festival, they became an integral part of the experience that each visitor could discover. What surprised me was that, given the somewhat unfavorable location of the event venue, they were able to seamlessly connect so many interesting destinations.
I haven’t had the chance to visit Japan to experience its festivals firsthand. I’ve only seen their websites and observed how they organize them, connecting destinations and industry partners in Japan to create amazing artistic experiences. Japan has many interesting industries, such as paper manufacturing, printing technology, new technologies, and stunning architectural spaces. Therefore, they also have significant advantages in building a successful global cultural and artistic brand.
A case study from Bangkok, Thailand, shows how they were able to seamlessly connect destinations on both sides of a river, bringing the river to life. From this central core, connecting points such as galleries and shopping malls were formed, like a vibrant tree branch with leaves and flowers. Then, like bees and butterflies, tourists flocked to these branches.
Some of my personal notes may be subjective, and I admit they are not entirely accurate. But they serve as a basis for my personal observations, allowing me to selectively learn from them in my work.
Returning to the environment where I live and work, there are still many shortcomings and limitations, but at the same time, there is also much potential that I believe can create a different experience for the Vietnamese tourism brand in the future.
Over the past year, I’ve taken a more adventurous step than usual, experimenting with linking tourist destinations and gradually testing a series of exhibitions in pilot shopping spaces across Vietnam.
Through photography, I collaborated with ChiLab Vietnam, the organization I founded, to bring selected Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional dress) brands to scenic regions of Vietnam. On each trip, we experimented with creating healthy and humane connections among participants. Instead of turning photo shoots into a high-pressure experience with a large team, we transformed them into a cultural experience structure encompassing:
Day 1: The team travels with the subject to tourist cities in Vietnam. We spend the first day exploring the culture and cuisine of each city. Vietnam is characterized by its coffee culture, so we are very excited about coffee breaks with beautiful views and interesting local experiences. This first day will also help us visualize which locations we feel most inclined to experiment with for the photoshoot.
Day 2: The subject will wear a traditional Vietnamese dress/designer outfit for a photoshoot at the scenic locations we selected on the first day. However, we also need some props for the shoot, so in this step, we will ask the subject if they have any souvenirs from the city in mind. We will also visit some traditional markets or souvenir shops before going to the photoshoot location to purchase some signature regional props. Furthermore, if there are fallen flowers in the area, we can improvise with these landscapes to create a connection between the subject and the plants grown in the area we will be photographing. The challenge we set for ourselves is to avoid knowing too much about the location we’re photographing, maintaining a mindset of exploration and observation of the differences in that place. For example, here there might be people exercising, there might be street vendors, and elsewhere there might be ancient trees, etc. And that’s always the most interesting part of photography, when we rely on the circumstances and the unfolding of life to blend into it.
One thing I want to emphasize here is that I’m more interested in the harmony of people within their surroundings than in the surroundings serving as a backdrop for people. Therefore, we will choose the more challenging path, which is to integrate into the surroundings, play with them, and become a part of their lives, rather than becoming coldly detached from them. For example, participating in dances with locals, visiting a park keeper’s garden, playing table tennis in the park, etc. And we need to utilize the services in these spaces to contribute to livelihoods and add real vibrancy to the environment.
One thing I noticed, and which somewhat reminded me of what Susan Sontag mentioned in his book *On Photography*, is the unrealistic perspective of photographers when they impose their subjective feelings on scenes that are inherently different… for example, trying to convey a sense of coldness in a very cheerful setting of life, and hiring locals to portray a coldness that the locals don’t actually experience. So, we like the feeling that, if we photograph them and they smile happily, we feel happy too; if they are quiet, we feel quiet too. That’s an approach that respects the local reality.
Therefore, trips to different regions will bring different feelings and emotions. For example, in one place, the photoshoot will be very cheerful, but in another, it will be more subdued, and in yet another, it will be more edgy and individualistic. This is a combination not only of the scenery, but also of the climate, the personality of the people, etc. And we want to blend in rather than stage artificial concepts.
After the photoshoot, which also marks the end of the tour and experience of that place, we will have sessions exploring local food establishments, depending on the specific location.
Day 3: We’ll spend this day experimenting with a creative connection activity based on the memories of the previous two days.
We’ll choose a café we enjoyed from a tourist’s perspective, have morning coffee, chat, and do a craft workshop decorating photos/postcards with motifs that we felt matched our mood at those locations.
Our experiment spanned 5 cities with 10 scenic destinations captured in photographs, and included 5 workshops creating handcrafted postcards featuring local motifs.
Certainly, things didn’t go as perfectly as we imagined, but we’re happy to share these experiences with you.
Thank you,
Chiron Duong From ChiLab Vietnam.
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Organized by ChiLab Vietnam
Project name: Don’t Be Afraid to Say Love You
Photos by Chiron Duong
Video by Hai Man
Craft workshop by Dremachi Space
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(Explore our images and video clips here)
Album: Love Of Life In 10 Parks Of Vietnam
Travel to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Album: Le Van Tam Park (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
10.788129, 106.693853
Album: Starlight Bridge and Crescent Lake Park (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
10.724815, 106.718105
Travel to Hue City
Open Landscape Space Along The Perfume River, Thien Mu Pagoda Boat Dock (Hue City, Vietnam)
Thuong Bac Park (Hue City, Vietnam)
Travel to Hanoi
Hoan Kiem Lake (Hanoi Capital, Vietnam)
21.029265, 105.853588
Botanical Park (Hanoi Capital, Vietnam)
21.040746, 105.831089
Travel to Vung Tau
Tam Thang Tower, Vung Tau Back Beach Park (Vung Tau Beach, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
10.346058, 107.073557
Vung Tau Beachfront Park (Vung Tau Beach, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
10.341973, 107.094669
Travel to DaLat
Light Park and Xuan Huong Lake (Da Lat City, Vietnam)
11.940121, 108.445734
Lam Vien Square (Da Lat City, Vietnam)
11.939263, 108.445052
Vietnam Travel Postcards Through The Journey- Don’t Be Afraid To Say Love
Through the amazing journey: “Don’t Be Afraid To Say Love” filled with friction and grappling with real life, we urge you to connect more with the surrounding environment and to live. However fragile a physical object may be, it carries an emotion that must be experienced rather than explained. One author captures this clearly, through flower:
Arranging hydrangeas is much like loving. When the flowers fade, the tiny petals fall like waves of snow, whitening the floor. No matter how long you clean, the remnants of a moment of intoxication cannot be fully gathered. Some endings must decay with such quiet devastation. And yet, when a new season of flowers appears—pure and radiant—you cradle them again, forgetting the earlier pain.
Arranging daffodils at their end is like parting from a kindred spirit. When daffodils fade, they draw their petals inward, drying intact on the stem, orderly and silent. The skeletal shadow of the flower cast onto memory becomes a kind of masterpiece, one that people carry for years, recalling only the first season of bloom in their lives.
Seasons turn, flowers change, and the heart learns familiarity. Those who love flowers change as well; why fear their moments of splendor or their decline?
If you have never sent a postcard, you can begin here. Our postcard is available for free. Print it, fill it with intentions then send it, and start the journey.
You are getting your hands dirty and finding that tactile epiphany that a frictionless screen can never give you. It’s the difference between just surviving in a chair and actually living on the ground.
You can download the project’s postcards here.
Celebrate The Trips
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Organized by ChiLab Vietnam
Project name: Don’t Be Afraid to Say Love You
Photos by Chiron Duong
Video by Hai Man
Craft workshop by Dremachi Space
*
(Explore our images and video clips here)
Album: Love Of Life In 10 Parks Of Vietnam
Thank you!
