Phuc Tan Public Art Project – How did we do it
Location 1: AGO Hub, 12 Hoa Ma, Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi
Location 2: Phuc Tan public art area
Time: Sunday 15/3/2020, 15h - 17h @ location 1 (AGO Hub); 18h-19h @ location 2 (Phuc Tan public art area) - when the artworks look best.

Note to participants: Please arrange your own transport and translator. The talk will be in Vietnamese, and occasionally in English (depending on questions from the audience)

About the event
Curator Nguyen The Son and the volunteer artists group (16 people) have created 16 interesting public artworks at the street number 1 and 2 of Phuc Tan ward, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi. Within less than 2 months of work, the artists have helped transform the riverside, which used to be seen as the back of a city, to become a highlighted art venue attracting media, young people and foreign visitors to come taking photos day and night.
Hanoi Grapevine, Ago Hub and the Proactive audience network PAN – Hanoi Grapevine cordially invite you to the talk with Curator Nguyen The Son and the artists group, to get a better understanding of the project concept, the working process and the co-creation between artists and local residents. After the talk, you are invited to join the curator and artists' visit to Phuc Tan public art area, to enjoy the beauty of the artworks under evening lights, to take plenty of photos with the curator, the artists and bring home good memories with you.

About the Phuc Tan public art Project:

The Phuc Tan public art Project was initiated by the People’s Committee of Hoan Kiem district since summer 2019 and was completed in February 2020.
A characteristic of this Phuc Tan area is that, despite having a historical location near Red River, similarly to other riverside areas, Phuc Tan has not been treated as the front of a city like more developed countries in the world. This area has still been seen as the back of the city, where people are allowed comfortably to throw rubbish. It is from this cultural context that the group of artists has the idea of implementing a public art project right on the wall that prevents the encroachment of the local people here. The project mostly uses recyclables from plastic bottles, drums, wheel rims, exhaust pipes, etc. from here and elsewhere in the city as the main raw materials to recreate the installation works that interact with the context of the Red River as well as with the rich cultural history of Thang Long Ke Cho.
Artists featured in Phuc Tan public art project: Nguyễn Thế Sơn (curator), Cấn Văn Ân, Phạm Khắc Quang, George Burchett, Vương Văn Thạo, Trịnh Minh Tiến, Lê Đăng Ninh, Nguyễn Hoài Giang, Nguyễn Trần Ưu Đàm, Nguyễn Xuân Lam, Nguyễn Ngọc Lâm, Diego Cortiza, Trần Hậu Yên Thế, Vũ Xuân Đông, Nguyễn Đức Phương, Trần Tuấn.

About curator/artist Nguyen The Son
Nguyen The Son is a visual artist, a photographer, art curator and a lecturer of Vietnam Fine Arts University. Nguyen The Son graduated from (BA) Fine Arts in Hanoi University of Fine Arts, graduated from University of Languages and International Studies and graduated Master of Fine Arts Photography and Experimental Arts at the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. , Beijing (CAFA). His works are often influenced by sociological research, questioning and reflecting on the broken and disappearance of humanity's memories and values in the process of changing and conflict of Vietnamese values during the changing period. Son has nearly 20 solo exhibitions and group exhibitions in Vietnam and many countries around the world such as USA, England, France, Sweden, Netherlands, Germany, Korea ... Son’s artworks has been collected at several museums such as the Worcester Art Museum, RMIT University, CAFA Art museum ...
In addition to personal projects, as a lecturer, he helped young talented undergraduates to organize workshops and multimedia art exhibitions. In recent years, as a mentor and curator organizing exhibitions with CSAGA Center, he has worked with vulnerable social groups to implement multimedia art exhibitions. In addition, he has also opened the direction to connect contemporary art with public spaces through projects such as "Public art on Phung Hung street", "Art space in the National Assembly's basement" , and most recently “Public art at Phuc Tan area”.

This event has free admission. Please register here: https://forms.gle/spPKvQLeNaAnjxzDA

** Please kindly note that this event will only be in Vietnamese. Please arrange your own translator if needed.