Hanoi - Hue - Ho Chi Minh City Literature and Arts: 50 years of pride

Speaking at the opening of the conference, artist Le Nguyen Hieu (Ho Chi Minh City Dance Artists Association) said: "Ho Chi Minh City is a dynamic city, 'good land attracts birds'. Although it is a meeting place, a convergence and intersection of many regions, Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City still has its own unique features typical of the fertile and generous new land of the south. Artists have contributed decisively to creating many brands for literature and art, such as: Tran Huu Trang Award, Golden Bell of Southern Folk Songs, Ho Chi Minh City Dance Festival , Autumn Melody ...".

- Ảnh 1. — Mr. Nguyen Tho Truyen - Deputy Head of Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Department of Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee gave a speech at the workshop

However, in order for HCM City's arts and culture to have a unique appearance, artist Le Nguyen Hieu frankly said: "We know that society is always moving, the old and backward will be replaced by the new and progressive, and the same is true in the field of arts and culture. However, in reality, the old is not more backward than the new, but sometimes the old is the one that cannot be replaced. From that awareness, I would like to present some contents for discussion and can consider them as 'unleashing' solutions so that artists can have works of value commensurate with the stature of the nation in today's era."

Journalist and director Thanh Hiep - Head of the Theory and Criticism Department of the Ho Chi Minh City Theater Association said: "Literature and art both affirm and criticize, both nurture and support, both serve as a spiritual support and sternly warn people, helping them recognize bad things and imperfections so that they can self-correct. The positive effects that literature and art bring are undeniable. On the contrary, if literature and art are allowed to follow low and mediocre tastes, their negative impacts will have a significant impact on the public, especially the youth. These negative impacts have been alarming in recent years."

Join hands to make the "epic" fly far

President of the Ho Chi Minh City Writers Association Trinh Bich Ngan highlighted the role of the press in being a "midwife" for many successful prose writers: "There have been many origins from short stories printed in the Ho Chi Minh City Literature and Arts Newspaper (from 2000 onwards), especially Thanh Nien and Tuoi Tre - two newspapers with a stable readership and a number of other newspapers, over the past 50 years have selected and published tens of thousands of short stories. It is a rather large collection in terms of quantity and quality, reflecting the reality of mixed gains and losses of people and Vietnamese society that is groping for innovation with many cracks, many hidden corners, many fates, from war to peace , from private torment to personal worries, from personal desires to community aspirations".

- Ảnh 3. — The President of the Literature and Arts Association chaired the scientific conference *on Literature and Arts of Hanoi - Hue - Ho Chi Minh City: 50 years of pride in the heroic epic (April 30, 1975 - April 30, 2025)* in Ho Chi Minh City.

Architect Nguyen Truong Luu - Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Literature and Arts is very... worried that Ho Chi Minh City is lacking good songs about itself. He gave an example: "If one day suddenly remembers "Saigon", looking for songs with the keyword: Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City, we see that the number of songs is very modest compared to Hanoi, Hue, Da Lat, Quang Binh, Ha Tinh, ... and even Ca Mau. Hanoi has many good songs about itself. I wonder if Hanoi has all four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, winter. Hanoi has the Red River, West Lake, Hoan Kiem Lake... Hanoi has a thousand years of civilization, so Hanoi has its own "identity"? Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City also has rainy season, sunny season, Saigon River, a dense system of canals... why are there so few good songs about itself? Or the city does not have enough "identity" to have contemplation, poetry, excitement, to vibrate. Or the cultural "identity" is the same. Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City, 300 years old, seems small compared to the length of 4,000 years of national history, compared to 1,000 years "Hanoi's 500 years of civilization, compared to Hoi An's 500 years?".

Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Arts and Literature: "With the 'culture' of Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City, immigrants nationwide have also become Ho Chi Minh City people, even when they return to their hometowns, they still live and express the culture of Saigon. The 'culture' of behavior and relationships, an industrial, civilized 'culture'. Is it true that citizens from different regions who are living and working in Ho Chi Minh City are influenced by the city's civilization, so when they return to their hometowns, they also lose some of their 'identity' of their hometowns and they also leave behind many other regional identities for the city, contributing to making Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City a diverse cultural center with many nuances".

Culture with new literary and artistic values

People's Artist Tran Quoc Chiem - Chairman of the Hanoi Literature and Arts Association - proudly said: "With the position of a thousand-year-old capital, Hanoi is the place where traditional cultural values of the nation are formed and preserved, a place where different cultural regions and areas converge and intersect. The selected characteristics through historical periods have created the character of Hanoi people in general and the generation of Hanoi artists in particular."

"From 2011 to now, the capital's literature and arts have shown a harmonious blend of tradition and modernity, vividly reflecting urban life and the innovative spirit of an integrating city. Hanoians in the new era appear in literary and artistic works that are both elegantly traditional and approach modern, dynamic life; many hot issues of urban life are reflected truthfully and positively.

Street art activities, cultural festivals, outdoor exhibitions, and community art projects in areas such as the Old Quarter, Hoan Kiem Lake, and walking streets are increasingly numerous and large-scale, meeting the enjoyment needs of the capital's people and tourists. With the strong participation of the young generation and support from technology, the capital's cultural space has become more diverse, expanded, and closer to the public, contributing to affirming Hanoi's position as a typical creative cultural center of the country," People's Artist Tran Quoc Chiem emphasized.

- Ảnh 4. — The event is a connection between the Hanoi Association of Literature and Arts - Hue City Association of Literature and Arts and Ho Chi Minh City Association of Literature and Arts

- Ảnh 5. — Visitors to the exhibition of *Architecture, fine arts, photography, and literature books* at the headquarters of the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Literature and Arts Associations (81 Tran Quoc Thao, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City)

Writer Ho Dang Thanh Ngoc - Chairman of the Hue City Union of Literature and Arts Associations presented a summary of the Hue arts scene since the country's reunification, with many proud achievements. "A large group of artists is growing, with new faces: Thanh Hai, Tran Hoan, Nguyen Khoa Diem, Tong Hoang Nguyen, Nguyen Quang Ha, To Nhuan Vy, Nguyen Dac Xuan, Ha Khanh Linh, Nguyen Tuyen Trung, Ngo Kha, Hoang Phu Ngoc Tuong, Tran Vang Sao, Nguyen Huu Ngo, Tran Cong Tan, Que Lam, Tran Thanh Lam, Tran Pha Nhac, Le Khanh Thong, Nghiem Si Thai, Pham Dang Tri, Trinh Cong Son, Buu Y, Buu Chi, Vinh Phoi, Do Ky Hoang, Dinh Cuong, Tan Hoai Da Vu, Le Khac Cam, Hoang Dang Nhuan, Thai Ngoc San, Nguyen Dong Nhat, Ngu Ngu, Le Van Ngan, Le Ganh, Dang Mau Tuu, Vo Que, Tran Dinh Son Cuoc...", said Mr. Ho Dang Thanh Ngoc.

"Hue artists are cultural ambassadors, folk artists, cultural activists... They are the ones who preserve and promote the cultural heritage of their ancestors, cultivate new cultural and artistic values for the culture, promote the cultural values of the land to the world, and contribute to building good emotional impressions in the hearts of tourists from all over the world," President Ho Dang Thanh Ngoc added.

Also on the morning of June 27, the organizing committee opened the exhibition of Architecture, fine arts, photography, and literary books at the headquarters of the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Literature and Arts Associations, introducing selected works of artists from the three regions to the public.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/van-hoc-nghe-thuat-ha-noi-hue-tphcm-50-nam-tu-hao-185250627113022448.htm