Ao Dai Week 2021 opens in Ho Chi Minh City

A series of cultural activities within “Ao Dai Week 2021” are being organised in Ho Chi Minh City this weekend to celebrate International Women's Day (March 8).

An exhibition of Ao Dai collections by renowned designers will open at the Ao Dai Museum in Ho Chi Minh City on March 7. (Photo courtesy of the organiser)
An exhibition of Ao Dai collections by renowned designers will open at the Ao Dai Museum in Ho Chi Minh City on March 7. (Photo courtesy of the organiser)

A special exhibition of two collections of Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional dress) by renowned designers will open at the Ao Dai Museum in Long Thuan Garden in District 9 on March 7.

They include Ao Dai owned by outstanding women working in politics, culture and arts, such as Dr Trinh Thi Hoa, the former director of the HCM City History Museum, and veteran soldier Dang Hong Nhut, who have both encouraged young women to study and develop their careers as well as live more independently.

The museum displays Ao Dai owned by Nguyen Thi Dinh, the first woman major general to serve in the Vietnam People's Army, former Vice State President Nguyen Thi Binh, and some of HCM City's well-known cai luong (reformed opera) artists, including Kim Cuong and Bach Tuyet.

A photo exhibition featuring Vietnamese women in Ao Dai will also be held on the occasion.

The two exhibitions will open at 206/19/30 Long Thuan Street and will close at the end of the month.

Fashion designer Si Hoang, the museum’s owner, said Ao Dai Week 2021 promotes traditional cultural identity and the image of Vietnamese women.

Hoang spent 12 years to establish the museum thanks to his love for the traditional attire. “The long robes have aesthetic, historic and cultural value,” he said.

In Hanoi, the union and Museum of Vietnamese Women have worked together to open a photo exhibition of 358 images featuring Vietnamese women, their place, and their contributions to the country.

Captured by veteran artist Dinh Quang Thanh, the works on display portray women and their heroic activities in the national resistance wars against France and the US.