But What Even Is an Expat: Unpacking the Highly Contentious Term, in Vietnam and Abroad
“Expat is a racist as hell term” — this is the take of Misan Harriman on the popular internet show SubwayTakes. The ...
Adrien Jean in Travel
The Enigmatic Neon-Lit World in the Mist of Sapa
Is there a more atmospheric place in Vietnam than Sapa on a misty night?
Khôi Phạm in Music & Arts
Review: Pieces of Me | Nao Yoshioka (feat. Mỹ Anh)
Mỹ Anh has come a long way since becoming the runner-up of The Heroes in 2021. Five years later, now with a full-length album and a spectrum of singles and extended plays under her belt, the Hanoi-based artist has proven to be one of the most dynamic singer-songwriter-producer of her generation.
Art Exhibition ‘Limerence’ Explores Where Romantic Desire Distorts Into Obsession
Thom Nguyen utilizes portraiture and depictions of mushrooms and organic objects to explore the concept of limerence in a solo exhibition at Permanently Closed Gallery in Thảo Điền, beginning Friday, August 28.
How Vinahouse Fosters Sonic Belonging in Modern Saigon's Queer Collectives
If you spend a night wandering along Bùi Viện Walking Street and its dense concentration of bars and clubs, you will almost certainly hear the same sound spilling from multiple directions: fast, pounding basslines layered with Vietnamese pop melodies, punctuated by dramatic buildups and explosive drops. If you fall into the right algorithm on TikTok, you might encounter these same sounds circulating as background audio. This music is Vinahouse. Its ever-presence in both physical and digital spaces makes it one of the most recognizable yet least critically examined musical forms in contemporary Vietnam.
Xuân Phương in Culture
Inside Tế Tiêu, Home to Vietnam's Rare 'Land Puppet' Performances
Bidding goodbye to central Hanoi, I took the National Road 21B to reach Tế Tiêu Neighborhood, a small community in Đại Nghĩa Township of Hanoi’s Mỹ Đức District. This fertile patch of land by the Đáy River is the cradle of a unique form of traditional folk art: Tế Tiêu puppetry.
How Quy Nhơn's Old Cemetery Slowly Expands up Vũng Chua Mountain
You might miss it if you were driving past, but once you walk down a small hẻm off Quy Nhơn’s main Tây Sơn Street, the massive cemetery sprawls in all directions.
All Aboard the Languorous 35-Hour Train From Hanoi to Saigon
The train connecting Vietnam’s largest cities takes 35 hours. Yet even after the first time I finished the trip, I was already coming up with excuses for why I needed to do it again. For me, the journey is much more than a chance for great views and time to reflect. It’s an exploration of life itself.
[Video] This Is How You Nhậu in the Digital Age
If you spend any time on a mobile device, you're probably aware of how technology is destroying humans. There are a whole corners of the internet dedicated to smartphone addiction and someone is ...
Zelda Goes to the Gallery: The Power of Semiosis
French-based Japanese artist Yohei Yama lights up Vin Gallery with a feast of colorful Op art canvasses during his debut exhibition, The Power of Semiosis.
'Yellow Flowers' Becomes Highest-Grossing Vietnamese Drama Ever
Over a month after its debut, Toi Thay Hoa Vang Tren Co Xanh (Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass) – the stunning, state-commissioned film by Vietnamese-American director Victor Vu – continues to rake i...
[Video] Vietnamese Sculptor Creates Stunning Wood-and-Metal Sculptures
Last month, Vietnamese sculptor Bui Hai Son and painters Le Kinh Tai and Nguyen Quang Vinh displayed their work at FILTERS: Vietnam Contemporary Art Exhibition. While the show featured substantial exh...
Saigoneer's October Art Picks
October saw several Saigon debuts of emerging, mid-career and established artists from a variety of artistic backgrounds. Here are the pieces that caught our attention over the previous month.
November Movies at Saigon's Alternative Film Venues
As award season approaches, November might be the last chance you have this year to dive into the world of alternative and low-budget films, which is dominated by French and American productions.
Event Rewind: Halloween Hẻm Jam
While people across the city embraced this weekend's Halloween festivities, 3A Station was especially lively as Saigoneer joined forces with GiantStep Gallery and iLL Beats Saigon to put on the first-...
Zelda Goes to the Gallery: Jack Clayton Solo Exhibition
Fragmented images of a bustling Saigon, Vietnam’s past and present, the theories of Francis Bacon and Carl Jung – all find a place within the intricate woodcut prints and ink illustrations of Jack Cla...
[Video] Watch This Toyota Logo Disappear in 3 Seconds Flat
Saigon is full of magic tricks, from gravity-defying motorbike cargo to skyscrapers built at hyperspeed. But perhaps the least-welcome form of Saigon magic is the swift and unexpected disappearance of...
Saigon's First-Ever Affordable Art Opens This Week
Following two successful events up north, affordable art fair Art for You is coming to Saigon with the help of Hanoi-based galleries Work Room Four and Manzi. We caught up with the fair's organizers t...
It's Official: 'Kong: Skull Island' Will Film in Vietnam
Last month, director and screenwriter Jordan Charles Vogt-Roberts scouted locations in Vietnam for his upcoming film, Kong: Skull Island, the prequel to the 2005 Hollywood blockbuster King Kong.
[Video] A Poetic Look at Cho Lon
Some people have a knack for seeing things differently. Just like the backpacker who managed to make Pham Ngu Lao seem like a bastion of authentic local culture, so have Huy Tran and the Only in Saigo...
[Photos] Photographer Captures Slum Life on the Banks of Hanoi’s Red River
From north to south, urban Vietnam is full of contrasts. Skyscrapers go up next to shophouses. Food carts rub shoulders with five-star hotels. And sometimes, amid the changing cityscapes of this fast-...
Sweden Just Held Its Largest Ever Exhibition of Contemporary Vietnamese Art
Mien Meo Mieng / Contemporary Art from Vietnam – the most comprehensive exhibition of contemporary Vietnamese art ever presented in Sweden – features installations, drawings, paintings, videos and scu...
Stunning Vietnamese Children's Book Wins Asia-Wide Prize
When it comes to reading materials for kids, Vietnam is full of small, inexpensive paperbacks, but seldom does the country produce a colorful, high-quality storybook like The First Journey.
Dana Filek-Gibson in Music & Arts
The Music Man: Mark Gergis' Old-School Saigon Soul
When he was young, Mark Gergis – like most American teenagers – spent a lot of time sifting through records (or cassettes or CDs or iTunes...whatever your generation did). It was the 1980s, and there ...
Vietnamese Film Submitted to 2016 Oscars
For the first time in two years, a Vietnamese film is in the running for an Academy Award.
Islands, Archipelagos and Other Liquid Territories: Exploring the High Seas with Map Office
Acclaimed Hong Kong-based artists Laurent Gutierrez and Valerie Portefaix of Map Office bring to Dia Projects their first solo show in Saigon, titled Islands, Archipelagos and Other Liquid Territories...
[Photos] 15 Old Photos to Celebrate Vietnamese Women's Day
Today marks the 85th Vietnamese Women's Day. A nationally observed holiday since 1930, October 20 commemorates the day upon which the country's Women's Union was officially established and recognized ...
Saigon Student Creates Vietnam-Themed Alphabet
When Luu Trong Nhan first came across Around the World with Type, a project by Indian design students Rigved Sathe and Payal Jagwani, the 23-year-old student knew he could create an equally stunning V...
