In the midst of a global pandemic and extreme internal restrictions in Vietnam, contemporary art space The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre has launched a new art award, the Artist Excellence Award. This award is aimed at giving recognition to a single Vietnamese artist who lives in Vietnam, and whose experimental practice embraces unique perspectives – a vision that deepens, explores and nurtures the ideas, people and places that it engages and collaborates with.
The Factory itself has been closed since 30 May, so what gives?
We conducted an email interview with Artistic Director of The Factory, Zoe Butt (ZB) and inaugural award winner artist Nguyễn Thị Thanh Mai (TM) to find out more about the award, the contemporary art scene in Vietnam, and what they think lies ahead.