Paul Christiansen

in Music & Arts

The Unquenchable Spirit of Artist Lê Triều Điển

“Điển is like a flower; there is no question of growing or not growing.”

in Music & Arts

Cổ Động's Live Session Series 'Động Tag' Returns for Season 2 With 9 Vietnamese Artists

Động Tag Live Session, Cổ Động’s series of live recordings aiming to highlight Vietnam’s up-and-coming musicians, is returning with a second season.

in Culture

The Artist Preserving Saigon's Cultural Tapestry Through Hand-Painted Signs

"In the early 2000s, the market experienced an exodus of painters due to the shift to digital; it was difficult to retain customers otherwise. I didn't want my craft to be forgotten, so I started everything all over,” Nguyễn Hoài Bảo told me in Vietnamese when I visited his studio.

in Travel

Vietnam Welcomes 21m Tourists in 2025, Highest-Ever Figure in History

Last year marked an impressive year for tourism in Vietnam. A record number of 21.17 million international tourists visite...

in Loạt Soạt

Viet Thanh Nguyen's New Essay Collection Is Both Theoretically Sharp and Intimately Tender

Last year, acclaimed Vietnamese American writer Viet Thanh Nguyen published To Save and to Destroy: Writing as an Other, a collection of six essays adapted from the prestigious Norton Lectures that he delivered at Harvard in 2023–2024.

in Travel

Hanoi's Proposal to Stop Train Service Might Spell the End of 'Train Street'

Hanoi’s infamous train street might be going away if a new municipal plan becomes a reality.

in Fashion

In Sa Pa, Learning How to Indigo Dye, One Plant, Vat, and Beeswax Pen at a Time

My first meal in Sa Pa was accidentally earned. After a few hours of uneven rest in a sleeper bus and a short ride from Sa Pa city center to the village, I finally arrived, along with two other indigo enthusiasts, at a small hill in bản Cát Cát. A few modest houses framed a quiet courtyard where indigo vats rested, and long strips of dyed fabric hung on bamboo poles, drying in the morning air.

Khôi Phạm

in Quãng 8

Hanoi Indie Duo Limebócx Brings Tried-and-Trù Traditions to Young Ears

A grazing buffalo, frolicking water puppets, mystifying tam cúc cards, an insolent maiden in áo tứ thân, a rustic meal around cái mâm. These are just a few standout visuals that will haunt your brain upon feasting your eyes on Limebócx’ debut music video ‘Yêu Nhau (Qua Cầu Gió Bay).’

Back Arts & Culture

in Arts & Culture

#WeAreSaigoneer: Instagram Shots of the Week

From serviced apartments to cozy izakayas, this is what we saw through our lens this week.

in Film & TV

In Search of Lost Time: The Story of Vietnam's Single-Screen Cinemas

Once upon a time, like the rest of the world, Vietnam’s metropolises were home to a plethora of single-screen cinemas. Unfortunately, with the arrival of television, VCRs and DVD players, these relics...

in Music & Arts

[Photos] Cambodian Artist Breathes Life Into Intricate Sketches With Digital Enhancement

Watch closely as flora and fauna, the sun and stars are brought to life under the hands of Cambodian artist Visoth Kakvei.

in Arts & Culture

[Photos] Local Artists Create Colorful, Lively Traffic Safety Illustrations

A group of local artists has created a traffic safety project which uses colorful illustrations to educate the public on how to drive properly.

in Music & Arts

[Photos] Taiwanese Art Project Turns Dirty Water Into Frozen Popsicles

These popsicles will make you sick, but they’ll also teach you a valuable lesson about water pollution.

in Music & Arts

[Photos] Artist Captures Old Edo's Remnants in Busy Tokyo

Shinji Tsuchimochi's ukiyo-e illustrations breathe nostalgia into Japan's cool and modern capital.

in Arts & Culture

#WeAreSaigoneer: Instagram Shots of the Week

From Saigon hẻm life to fish baskets, this is what we saw through our lens this week.

in Music & Arts

$350,000 Vietnamese Painting Sold at Christie's Allegedly a Fraud

According to art dealers and collectors, rampant counterfeits may devalue Vietnamese paintings on the international market.

in Culture

[Photos] A Tour of Hong Kong's Cramped 'Kowloon Walled City'

Today Hong Kong is known for its sleek modernity and space-age skyscrapers, but not long ago it was home to a massive unplanned residential block known as Kowloon Walled City.

Khoi Pham

in Literature

Award-Winning Vietnamese Children's Book 'The First Journey' Finally Released

It’s been over a year since we wrote about The First Journey, the award-winning children's book that clinched the top prize at 2016’s Asia-wide Scholastic Picture Book Award competition.

in Arts & Culture

[Illustrations] 'Sai Gon 3 Met Vuong' Is a Love Letter to Our Saigon Childhood

Within a three-square-meter block in Saigon, one can neatly fit in many things: an entire mom-and-pop shop, a barber shop, or even the dining area of a street food stall.

in Arts & Culture

#WeAreSaigoneer: Instagram Shots of the Week

From a morning in Thi Nghe Market to a duck noodles stall in the rain, this is what we saw through our lens this week.

in Arts & Culture

Japanese Photographer Releases Photobook on Tokyo's Stray Cats

In Masayuki Oki’s book, when it comes to cats, personality is more important than typical cuteness.

Michael Tatarski

in Music & Arts

'Girls Rock Asia' Brings Together Female Musicians From Across Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia isn’t particularly well-known for its live music scene. Major international acts might only play Bangkok or Singapore, if they stop in the region at all. Home-grown acts are common, but...

in Arts & Culture

[Photos] Rainy Season in Vietnam: An Ode to Boats, Raincoats and Flooding

Elsewhere in the world, a heavy bout of rain might not be a big deal. However in Vietnam, where flooding is a common occurrence, the rainy season is a prime occasion for the country’s shutterbugs to c...

in Film & TV

'Em Chua 18' Is Vietnam's First Film to Have Foreign Remakes

Foreign filmmakers are seeking to remake Em Chua 18, Vietnam's biggest domestically produced box-office hit to date.

in Arts & Culture

#WeAreSaigoneer: Instagram Shots of the Week

From Saigon skyline to Art Deco facades, this is what we saw through our lens this week.

Dana Filek-Gibson

in Music & Arts

A Present Retrospective: Fusing Past, Present and Propaganda

Work Room Four’s current exhibition, A Present Retrospective, connects past and present in the iconic work of Cuban graphic artist René Mederos and the responses of five contemporary Vietnamese artist...

in Arts & Culture

#WeAreSaigoneer: Instagram Shots of the Week

From the grits of Saigon's chợ cũ to the city from above, this is what we saw through our lens this week.

Khoi Pham

in Music & Arts

[Video] Saigoneer Session: Ca Hoi Hoang's Paper Dream

The first time I met Ca Hoi Hoang frontman Nguyen Viet Thanh and band leader Nguyen Thanh Minh was in the midst of a sweltering Saigon afternoon.