(VOVWORLD) - The Hanoi-based Vincom Center for Contemporary Art (VCCA) opened in June this year. The nonprofit center, fully funded by Vingroup, is designed to help develop Vietnam’s contemporary art by gathering in artists and organizations. What makes VCCA unique is that this is an underground display space but still overwhelmed with natural light.
 The exhibition hall is designed with minimalism. (Photo: My Tra/VOV) |
Located at the urban complex Royal City, the 4-thousand-square-meter centre can accommodate different types of art: installation, sculpture, stage performance, and video art. A large show window leads visitors to the inside exhibition area. Art works vary by the four seasons, each of which has a special theme and a series of educational activities and art experiences. Displayed there currently is “The Golden Allegory”, a combination of installation art, sound effects, and video art, showing the way Vietnamese French artist Truc Anh views trade and culture.
 “The Golden Allegory” is displayed at the show window. (Photo: My Tra/VOV) |
VCCA, designed with minimalism, is an ideal venue for artists to showcase their personalities and artistic styles. Tran Khanh Chuong, Chairman of the Vietnam Fine Arts Association, said: “Young artists need a space, modern and large enough, to accommodate their creative and sometimes large works. They can find it at VCCA which will inspire artists and make them better known to the public. I’m happy to see young artists engage themselves in contemporary works, like installation art, stage art, and video art”.
 The art work resembles Hanoi's apartments during the subsidy period. (Photo: My Tra/VOV) |
The very first exhibition at VCCA was called “The Foliage”, showcasing giant works of 18 Vietnamese and foreign contemporary artists. The pieces are placed together and linked by their artistic values instead of a specific theme or chronology. Nguyen Dang Dung, a student at Hanoi Architectural University, told VOV: “Each exhibition space has its own attraction. Glass pictures, models, abstract paintings all impress me. An installation work at the center of the exhibition room, featuring Hanoi’s apartments during the subsidy period and contrasting blank white walls, is amazing, too. I learn from this exhibition how to deliver my idea through the art works without using captions”.
 The "Wish Tree" is full of wish-tags. (Photo: Tu Anh/VOV) |
Among the favorite items at VCCA is the “Wish Tree’ at the entrance. Visitors can write their wishes on small pieces of paper – known as wish-tags – and hang them onto the tree. The wish-tags are collected by John Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono and buried around her Imagine Peace Tower in Reykjavik, Iceland. The tower emanates a skyward light for two months every year, starting on John Lennon’s birthday and ending on each anniversary of his passing. As a monument to his memories and legacy, Wish Tree is a celebration of life, love and unity. To date, the project has visited 19 different cities around the world. Phan Khanh Ly of Hanoi said: “The Wish Tree gives me hope. I feel happier when I look at this. If life pulls me down, I just come here and write down my wish. It works well in relieving my stress”.
 (Photo: Tu Anh/VOV) |
VCCA also hosts flower arrangement workshops, canvas painting tutorials, and frequent talks with artists, who come to share stories of their own careers and of Vietnam’s contemporary art development.