Department of Community Development and Applied Economics faculty member Veronica Pham recently traveled to Hue, Vietnam, to co-curate an international exhibition hosted at University of Arts, Hue University alongside faculty art and design lecturer, Phan Hải Bằng. The recent exhibition and its artistic and scholarly activities drew attention from Vietnam Television (VTV) for Hue TV.
Professor Pham, a design lecturer at CDAE and interdisciplinary artist specializing in handmade paper, fiber arts, and cultural material studies, co-curated the exhibition “Spirit/Hiện Hữu: New Forms on Handmade Paper” at the University of Arts, Hue University. The exhibition, co-curated by Pham and her colleague Phan Hải Bằng at the University of Arts, explored how traditional papermaking practices continue to evolve in contemporary artistic contexts, highlighting connections between heritage craft, spirituality, and modern design. The exhibition brought together local and international artists to reinterpret handmade paper as a living spiritual material, engaging with cultural memory and ecological processes.
“The works on display opened conversations about the meaning of Vietnamese culture through material craft knowledge and paper’s significance,” said Professor Pham. “The process of papermaking, a historic and ancient process in Vietnam, requires months to make a single sheet of paper. Today, only a handful of communities still use the ubiquitous substrate used for food wrapping, ancestor worship, Tết, calligraphy, traditional folk printing and painting. Today, handmade paper is transforming in new contexts for contemporary art. The exhibition made connections between historic, traditional papermaking processes and how it continues to transform through artists working within the fiber process. Through the amalgamation of varied paper forms, oral traditions, ecology, and spiritual worship is preserved and continues to persist within Vietnamese collective identity.”
The exhibition featured five local artists of Hue using culture and tradition in new forms. Nguyễn Phước Nhật, Trần Quang Thắng, and Phan Hải Bằng displayed Trúc Chỉ works, a contemporary Hue paper craft form using printmaking and papermaking techniques. Trúc Chỉ has become widely celebrated in Vietnam for its unique application blending traditional and modern processes and transforming paper into autonomous works of art.
Artist Phan Ngọc Hiếu, who worked closely with the Thanh Tiên Paper Flower Village of Hue, presented works using handmade paper and patterns of the royal garden in Hue known as Pháp Lam. Among the Hue artists was master woodblock artist Kỳ Hữu Phước, who displayed traditional woodblock prints depicting local life and culture of Hue Sình Village. Mr. Phước is nearing 85 and is still seeking a predecessor to carry on the legacy of his craft. He hopes the younger generation can still be inspired and learn from traditional woodblock techniques.
From the Dao Tiền papermaking community, papermakers Triệu Phúc Thìn and Lý Sao Mai, alongside Zó Project founder Trần Hồng Nhung, displayed collaborative works using dó fiber. These works highlighted traditional dó paper, pulp paintings, and contemporary forms. The exhibition presented handmade paper within Vietnamese culture and invited visitors and students at Hue University to learn through talks, workshops, and direct engagement with handmade paper and its unique applications in Vietnam.
In the exhibition, two artists, Nguyễn Đức Thịnh and Veronica Y Pham, exhibited one-of-a kind artist books using handmade paper both in different structures. Among the artists, Lê Phúc Duy, exhibited works showcasing the dimensional possibilities of paper as sculpture.
The exhibition and workshop activities were part of a broader academic exchange aligned with University of Arts, Hue University’s ongoing efforts to foster international dialogue around art, culture, and interdisciplinary research. The visit also featured opportunities for Pham to connect with Vietnamese scholars, teach workshops in craft and design, and build collaborative ties in the region.
In addition, Vietnam Television (VTV) provided coverage of the event and its international participants, showcasing the vibrant scholarly and creative energy at Hue University and underscoring the global reach and cultural relevance of Pham’s work abroad.