Despite its recent commencement (since November 17), numerous heritage sites, particularly the industrial heritage of Hanoi, have been awakened by a series of cultural and artistic events at the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023.
This event has played a part in realizing the capital’s six commitments when participating in UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network, aligning with the creative vision for Southeast Asia’s capital city.
Visitors watched art performances at the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023 at Gia Lam Locomotive Factory. Photo by: Trong Hieu
Witnessing a Millennium-old Capital through a Creative Lens
For the first time, residents witnessed long queues forming to explore the interior of the Hang Dau Water Tower (Ba Dinh District) – a heritage nearly 130 years old, intertwined with many historical events of Hanoi. During the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023, the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower” brought surprising and intriguing emotions to the capital’s public as they strolled through the space of the ancient water tower.
Near the Hang Dau Water Tower, a special train journey named the “Heritage Journey” departed from Hanoi Station, Long Bien Station, and Long Bien Bridge, historically crossing the Red River to reach the Gia Lam Locomotive Factory. This special train journey connects seemingly forgotten heritages in the modern pace of life. After participating in the “Heritage Journey” train, Ms. Bui Kim Ngan, a resident of Dong Da District, shared, “It’s been a long time since I experienced the familiar train journey of 30-40 years ago. This experience reminds me of the old, challenging Hanoi during the subsidy period and the fierce wartime years. I hope that the ‘Heritage Journey’ train will be maintained long after the festival ends so that Hanoi residents can enjoy culturally rich and creative spaces like this.”
Notably, the highlight of the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023 is the Gia Lam Locomotive Factory – the venue for dozens of cultural activities, exhibitions, seminars, and international forums, along with art introductions, community events, and a creative fair, all revolving around the theme “Flow” to connect creativity and uphold the historical cultural traditions. Thanks to its innovative approach and the gathering of over 200 units, creators, and artists from various fields, the festival has already achieved significant results. According to Bui Thi Huong Thuy, Deputy Head of the Cultural Heritage Management Division (Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports), since the opening day, Gia Lam Locomotive Factory has welcomed 20,000 visitors, and 3,000 visitors have explored the Hang Dau Water Tower. Notably, many three-generation families have come together to visit and experience these spaces.
In addition to activities in the main venues, the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023 marks the first-time participation of districts, towns, and municipalities with various cultural events showcasing traditional craft villages, cuisine, and heritage, coupled with the creative design of cultural products based on the distinctive strengths of each locality. Examples include the Cultural, Commercial, and Tourism Week of Van Phuc Traditional Craft Village (Ha Dong District), the artistic program “Sacred Chiem Temple – Flow of Essence” (Bac Tu Liem District), and children’s painting activities in response to the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023 (Ba Vi District).
Tourists experienced the special train journey “Heritage Journey” from Hanoi Station to Gia Lam Station. Photo by: Do Tam
Children from Ba Vi District participated in painting to support the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023. Photo by: Anh Duong
Positioning the Brand of the Creative City
Compared to previous years, the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023 is organized on the grandest scale to date in terms of space, duration, and diversity of activities and events. This edition has brought together numerous experts, both domestic and international organizations, artists, and creative communities from various fields. The festival not only captures the attention of the Hanoi public, serving as a “playground” for young artists but also establishes a positive foundation for creative spaces – a prerequisite for the development of the capital’s creative cultural industry in the coming years. This also reflects Hanoi’s efforts in fulfilling commitments made after becoming a member of UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network in 2019. Ramla Khalidi, the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Vietnam, emphasizes, “This year marks a significant milestone – it has been four years since Hanoi became Vietnam’s first city to join UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network in the field of design. We have listened to colleagues, creative practitioners, and Hanoi residents share their positive experiences and impressions of the city’s transformation. Through artistic and creative works, we can see and feel how the development of cultural resources in the city has breathed new life into this urban area,” said Ramla Khalidi.
After 4 years of joining the network, Hanoi has taken initial steps to make culture one of the key pillars in realizing commitments with UNESCO. Numerous mechanisms, policies, and plans have been enacted by the city to construct and develop the Creative City, such as Resolution No. 09-NQ/TU of the Party Committee on “Developing cultural industry in the capital area from 2021-2025, oriented to 2030, vision to 2045”; Plan No. 102/KH-UBND implementing initiatives to join UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network by 2025…
Sharing the significance of this year’s festival, Do Dinh Hong, Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, stated that with the theme “Flow,” the 2023 Creative Design Festival focuses on three main pillars: Design, Community, and Innovation. The aim is to connect and honor the new transformative values from the Heritage and Creative Community Foundation. Simultaneously, it sets the groundwork for developing industrial heritage into creative spaces and creating historically meaningful creative spaces. It places cultural innovation in the flow of time and generations, where artists and people of different ages have the opportunity to meet at the “crossroads” to preserve and promote the unique values of Hanoi’s culture.
This festival is also a platform to connect various parties, creating diverse and high-quality tourism products and creative cultural spaces for the public, both local and international tourists. It holds the promise of becoming a “launchpad” for the capital’s creativity, heading towards future sustainable economic activities and influencing the development of the cultural industry and other services. This is also a valuable resource to ignite the creativity of the capital, contributing to the realization of the vision of becoming a leading creative center in Southeast Asia.
Linh Tam
Hiện thực hóa tầm nhìn thủ đô sáng tạo (hanoimoi.vn)