With the dedication of the design team, the six exhibition spaces inspired by the water elements in East Asian culture in the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower” offer an experience that takes the audience back to nature. Through this, it establishes a connection between urban social life and the natural world, using water imagery to underscore the crucial role of water in contemporary life.
On the morning of November 17, the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, in collaboration with the People’s Committee of Ba Dinh District, organized the opening of the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower.” This event is part of the framework of the Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2023.
During the opening speech, Mr. Do Dinh Hong, Member of the Party Committee and Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, shared, “The theme of the Creative Design Festival 2023 is “Flow.” It represents the ‘Flow’ of heritage in the creative city and also the flow of creativity in our city’s heritage – streams merging with each other. When we talk about the flow, we must mention the Red River, the Cai River, as well as the Mother River that protects and intertwines with history, not only with the country but especially with our capital, Hanoi, through the ups and downs of over 1,000 years of history. With such significance, we aim to create a creative space for the community of those working in the creative field, those who love creativity, and our management profession, with both tangible and intangible heritage. With over 1,200 festivals, Hanoi, the capital, boasts an extensive number of festivals, ranking first in the country. Therefore, to fully leverage the inherent values left by our ancestors and the converging creativity of passionate and responsible individuals toward the capital, we proposed to organize the Creative Design Festival under the theme “Flow.”
Mr. Do Dinh Hong, Member of the Party Committee and Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, delivered the opening speech for the exhibition.
Hang Dau Water Tower, constructed in 1894, takes center stage in the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower.” The project is organized by a design team consisting of architect Cao The Anh, painter Nguyen Duc Phuong, and collaborators. With the aspiration to transform Hang Dau Water Tower into an artistic space, awakening cultural heritage and harmonizing with the rhythm of the new urban flow, the young artists have turned this place into an engaging stroll with two key arrangement systems: a sound arrangement system that reproduces the natural sound of water and a lighting arrangement system that expands the visual perception of recycled urban waste artifacts.
Delegates participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony and explored the exhibition.
The young artists creatively utilized the cylindrical shapes and circular vaulted walls of the water tower to establish a uniquely circular path. Alternating between bright and dark spaces, and solid and void areas, they have crafted emotions and surprises for visitors.
The “stroll” at the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower” is truly impressive and captivating due to the remarkably skilled combination of sound and color. The design artists applied various water flow levels (river water, creek water, spring water, rainwater, groundwater, and seawater) to create a background sound capable of transporting the audience’s minds to vast, expansive dimensions when exploring the exhibition. It is worth noting that the design team had to conduct numerous experiments on the water droplet frequencies, continuously adjusting each elevation level to choose the right sound frequency that promotes emotional healing and soothing human psychology. The selection of microphone types and speakers to reproduce the most natural water sounds also posed significant challenges for the creative minds and construction teams involved.
The creative space inside Hang Dau Water Tower captivates visitors.
Not only focusing on sound, the creative team led by artist Nguyen Duc Phuong also emphasizes the visual experience of the audience by using recycled materials from urban waste to create floating colorful discs, vibrant and dazzling within the Pavilion. This holds significant meaning as the design team intends to convey a message about the impact of urbanization on the natural environment.
With the dedication of the design team, the six exhibition spaces draw inspiration from the Six Elements in East Asian culture in the exhibition “Arranging Water and the Heritage of Hang Dau Water Tower.” It is an experience that transports the audience back to nature, thereby fostering the connection between urban society and the natural world through images of water, while also highlighting the crucial role of water in contemporary life.
A crowd of people eagerly lined up to visit the exhibition.
The exhibition is open from November 17 to 26, 2023 (with the possibility of extension) at Hang Dau Water Tower (Quan Thanh, Ba Dinh, Hanoi). According to the organizing committee, visitors will enter in groups of 20-30 people to ensure technical safety factors and to fully experience the artistic space inside the water tower.