Hanoi streets host works by German artists

Posters created by artists from Bremen, Germany, were displayed on motorcycles that rode the streets of Hanoi in December as part of Month of Arts Practice (MAP) 2024, showcasing different artistic interpretations of the theme of "movement."

MAP 2024, led by Heritage Art Space, is a collaboration with the University of the Arts Bremen as an academic partner. This initiative is part of the research project Pathways to Transformative Sustainability at Universities, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF/FONA) from 2023 to 2025. Together, Heritage Art Space and the University of the Arts Bremen are exploring artistic perspectives on movement.

After being designed in Germany, the posters were sent to Vietnam, printed, and mounted on motorcycles from December 14-20 to engage with the streets and residents of Hanoi. They are from Felix Dreesen, Florian Witt, Jeroen Jacobs, Kayle Brandon, Siegfried Bank, Soobeen Woo, and Alexander Noah.

According to Heritage Space, mobility often refers to physical movement from one point to another, but they also address concepts of mobility, including the mobility of languages and thought formations.

In this project, however, the Bremen artists examine movement from an artistic perspective, offering diverse interpretations across forms and media. The central question is What really moves? People in factories produce stationary goods, but these goods are distributed globally. Partnering with a delivery company adds a fascinating layer of interaction between art and other facets of life. This collaboration highlights the distributive nature of goods in modern society and the ways in which global commerce shapes human behavior.

According to Nguyen Anh Tuan, Artistic Director of Heritage Art Space and curator, this is the most exciting challenge of MAP 2024, bringing artists' ideas into the field of movement, raising questions about who or what is moving and how - people, vehicles, goods, ideas, streets, as well as the mobility of art exhibitions, their presentation and public reception.

The posters were created by Bremen-based artists, including Felix Dreesen, Florian Witt, Jeroen Jacobs, Kayle Brandon, Siegfried Bank, Soobeen Woo, and Alexander Noah.

Many creations continue the experiments of 2023. Some artists present completely new reflections that were born this year.

Felix Dreesen continues his explorations from 2023 with a series of three photographic works depicting landscapes and movement within them - underwater, on land and in the air.

Jeroen Jacobs introduces new ideas by using old envelopes with sender and recipient marks to symbolize communication and inherent thought processes.

Florian Witt develops a conceptual game idea, interweaving text, drawings, and maps on posters.

In the first year (2023), the Month of Arts Practice entitled Alternative Mobility explored the concepts of what artists understand by mobility today. The second year, Going Places, Moving Things, focused specifically on movement.

The mobile posters on delivery motorcycles are part of the second year of the showcase, complementing the Artist Open Studio at Long Bien Art Space.

The posters were mounted on motorcycles from December 14 to 20 to engage with Hanoi's streets and residents. Photos: Hoang Nguyen/The Hanoi Times

The interplay of posters, vehicle movement, urban landscapes, and public reactions creates a multi-layered narrative that shapes the unique artistic vision of this project.

Bremen artists explore movement from an artistic perspective, offering diverse interpretations across forms and mediums.

The posters were created by artists from Bremen.

It is part of the Month of Arts Practice (MAP) 2024, which presents various artistic interpretations of the theme of movement.

Inspired by a one-day walking performance in Bremen (November-December 2024), these romantic images create a poignant connection between Hanoi and Bremen, two cities 10,000 km apart.

Movement is portrayed through natural forces (flowing water), tools (a bicycle on a road), and muscular effort (birds migrating seasonally).