Russian photographer completes photo project on President Ho Chi Minh

Russian photographer Vera Mazhirina has completed her photo project entitled ‘Ho Chi Minh’s Era’, which was launched in celebration of the 131st birth anniversary of the great Vietnamese leader (1890-2021).

 Russian photographer Vera Mazhirina posing in front of a photo of President Ho Chi Minh (Photo: NDO/Thanh The)
Russian photographer Vera Mazhirina posing in front of a photo of President Ho Chi Minh (Photo: NDO/Thanh The)

When she first encountered Vietnam in 2016, Vera was immediately impressed by the land and people of the Southeast Asian country. Since she returned to Russia, she has taken many photos on the life of Vietnamese people in Moscow.

Vera’s ‘Ho Chi Minh’s Era’ project was launched in February 2021 with the support from the cooperation agency between Russian Federal Assembly's Federation Council and Vietnamese National Assembly, and the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia.

The photo project chronicles the life of President Ho Chi Minh and Vietnam’s historical periods with an aim to pay respect to the beloved leader of the Vietnamese nation, who laid the foundation and made contributions to establishing and cultivating the Vietnam-Russia friendship.

It included two parts, with the first one briefly outlining the history of Vietnam through artistic photographs as well as recalling the life and revolutionary career of President Ho Chi Minh and portraying the community of Overseas Vietnamese (OV) in Russia.

In the second part, Vera introduces portraits of representatives of the Vietnamese Embassy and OV community in Moscow, and members of Vietnam-Russia Friendship Parliamentarian Group, who are featured with photos and mementoes on Uncle Ho and the bilateral friendship.

Former Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Ngo Duc Manh posing with a photo of President Ho Chi Minh.

Vera said that she has learned more about President Ho Chi Minh as a result of the project. “It is interesting to work with documentary photos. The more I work with them, the more I want to study more deeply about President Ho Chi Minh's life and Vietnamese history,” said the Russian photographer.

According to her, the journey that President Ho Chi Minh had went on throughout his life led the Vietnamese people to a better life. She praised the Vietnamese President as an outstanding national hero and a symbol of Vietnam.

“Uncle Ho has been also highly appreciated in Russia thanks to his significant contributions to promoting Vietnam-Russia relations, in the interest of the peoples of the two countries,” Vera shared.

After the project "Ho Chi Minh Era", Vera said she will return to Vietnam so that she can take pictures in President Ho Chi Minh's hometown and visit places where he lived and worked.

“Vietnam has surprised me many times, and I couldn’t ignore the beauty of the natural landscapes and people I met there,” she said, adding that she wants to capture every moment of life in Vietnam.

She has also come up with an idea of implementing photo projects about Vietnamese youth studying in Russia, as well as the beauty of Vietnamese women.

When she first encountered Vietnam in 2016, Vera Mazhirina was immediately impressed by the land and people of the Southeast Asian country. (Photo: VNA)