To all of us here in the West, the Vietnam of the 1960s and early 70s was divided into the north, led by Ho Chi Minh, and south, led by the Americans, divided at the 17th Parallel by the DMZ. But to ordinary Vietnamese fighting for their independence there has always been only one Vietnam.

In north central Vietnam is the province of Thanh Hoa, where the photos in Face To Face were taken, all by photographers living with a disability. It is a mixed coastal and mountainous region dominated by rice production and fishing. The famous bridge over the strategic Song Ma river was subject to 873 America air sorties in the American War (this is the name the Vietnamese give the Vietnam War) and became a symbol of Vietnamese resistance and resilience. Towards the end of the war many men from Thanh Hoa were recruited into the army. Men like the fathers of the Face to Face photographers.

Over the course of 5 months in 2008, 16 participants took over 8000 photographs in and around their communities in both urban and rural areas using consumer level digital cameras. Coming from a variety of backgrounds and jobs, the participants have created images which give us a rich and authentic insight into their lives and challenge the viewer to rethink and refresh stereotypical views about people living with disabilities in Vietnam.

The Face to Face project was designed and facilitated by Ensemble creative training and development in Hanoi and funded by DED German Development Service and the Schmitz Foundation.

The documentary film of the project, Still Life Moving, will also be screened at the opening event on Tuesday 2 March. It can also be seen online here at the cultureunplugged Film Festival.

Ensemble creative training and development is based in Vietnam and helps a wide range of people and organisations express themselves through creativity, digital media and the arts. Led by Paul Zetter, it has built on the work of the David Glass Ensemble that began working in the region in 1996 with the Lost Child project. Paul works with a diverse range of educators, facilitators, artists and development practitioners all committed to creativity, lifelong learning and the improvement of lives and livelihoods. Paul is also a filmmaker and his last three documentaries have screened in festivals around the world. In the UK, Paul is an associate of Opera Circus in the Southwest and The Forge in the Northeast.

They work with a diverse range of talented educators, facilitators and artists all committed to lifelong learning and the development of others.

In their work they mix experiential learning with laughter, provocation and reflection, underpinned by a sense of possibility, responsibility and care that all combine to exhilarate and inspire. The Face to Face project is the tenth community photography project they have led in Southeast Asia.

When is it happening?

Preview Tue 2 March 18:00

Opens Wed 3 March (Daily Tue – Sat 10:00 - 23:00 / Mon 10:00 -18:00)

Where is it happening?

Stage 3

What makes this project Northern?

The exhibition comes from the North central Vietnam, or defined as ‘North Vietnam’ by the West in the 60s and 70s

Ticketing Information

Free

This exhibition is suitable for children, but at parents’ discretion: the exhibition deals with disability in Vietnam, sometimes representing this in a visual way, but it does not do so in a graphic manner.