“Memories and Legends” exhibition honors heroic Vietnamese mothers

THE HANOI TIMES — The exhibition "Memories and Legends" aims to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Reunification Day  (April 30, 1975 - 2025).

These works reflect the extraordinary strength and sacrifice of mothers who have given their youth, happiness, and even their families for the independence and future of the nation.

The images were taken over nearly five decades (1976-2020) by Colonel Tran Hong, a journalist, photographer, and former soldier of Battalion 2, Group 559, Truong Son Troop. As both an artist and a witness to war, Colonel Hong brings a rare deep understanding and empathy to each frame.

"Standing in front of each mother, I feel protected. Through the lens of the camera, I see the image of my own mother. My longing diminishes and I feel at peace," he said.

At the event, Van Duc Linh, Deputy Head of the Hoan Kiem Lake and Old Quarter Management Board, said the exhibition is the culmination of Col. Tran Hong's lifelong dedication to capturing the soul of Vietnamese mothers. "These are not just photographs but living monuments, emotional distillations of spirit, temperament, and unsung heroism."

Each portrait stands as a powerful narrative, moments frozen in time that reveal lives of unheralded valor. These women, though diverse in background and experience, are united by a common devotion: strong love for their homeland and a deep-seated hope for a future free from sorrow and war.

Many of these mothers suffered immeasurable loss when their husbands and sons went to the front and never returned. Others took up arms themselves or risked their lives to shelter revolutionaries and support the resistance. Their sacrifices, often unspoken and unseen, are the foundation of the national victory.

Among the most heart-wrenching images are those in the series "Mother - Deep in Nostalgia". One portrait shows Mother Tran Thi Em of Thach Quy Commune in the central province of Ha Tinh, who lost all three of her sons in the resistance war against the United States (1954-1975). Her grief was so deep that she lost her eyesight from crying. At the age of 87, her only remaining wish is to recover the remains of her sons who died on the battlefields of the South.

Another powerful image is of Mother Sau from the southernmost province of Ca Mau. Having lost her husband and two sons in the war, she is a symbol of the grief and unwavering strength borne by countless women across the country.

Then there is Mother Hoang Thi Moc of the northern province of Bac Ninh, who lost three sons in the war. Although she received three Fatherland Appreciation Certificates, she chose to display only one on the wall of her modest home. When the photojournalist met her, she quietly took the other two certificates out of a ceramic jar and said in a soft voice as she gazed at the family altar: "Pain does not need to be spoken over and over again."

More than a historical retrospective, "Memories and Legends" is a heartfelt tribute, an artistic expression of collective gratitude to the generation of mothers whose sacrifices helped write the nation's most heroic chapters. It is also a dialogue between past and present, connecting today's youth to the courage and love of the women who came before them.

The exhibition runs from April 25 to May 25 at the 1st floor of Ho Guom Cultural Information Center, No. 2 Le Thai To Street, near the legendary Hoan Kiem Lake, Hanoi.