Art & Entertainment News 16/7 2014 Toyota Concert Tour comes to Buon Ma Thuot For the first time organisers of the renowned Toyota Concert Tour will bring this much awaited show to Buon Ma Thuot city in the Central Highland province of Dak Lak this August in response to the 2014 Tay Nguyen National Tourism Year. This year’s programme, a combination of classical and contemporary music, will also be staged in Hanoi and HCM City, lasting from August 1-11. The concert will be performed by the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO) under the baton of Japanese conductor Honna Tetsuji. It especially welcomes the participation of meritorious cello artist Tran Thi Mo and pop star Tung Duong. The concert, which enters its 17th iteration, is co-organised by the Toyota Vietnam and the VNSO, aiming to contribute to the development of Vietnamese culture. The proceeds will be donated to the Toyota Scholarships Fund for young musical talents. French photographer captures Central Highland images French photographer Jean Marie Duchange is showcasing 34 photos of the Vietnam Central Highland region in the 1950s at an exhibition, which opened at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi on July 10. The photos were taken during  his visits to the Central Highland region from June 1952 to July 1955 and were selected from nearly 200 photos that his daughter Évelyne Duchange and granddaughter Nadège Bourgoin presented to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. Museum Deputy Director Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Duy Thieu spoke highly of the photo collection, saying they help visitors know more about daily lives of ethnic minority people in the Central Highland region, as well as their architectural art, traditional customs and religious rituals. The exhibition running until January 11 2015, also displays the camera that Jean Marie Duchange used to take the photos of Central Highlanders and landscapes. Dong Son culture introduced in RoK The Jeju National Museum is prominently displaying 400 artefacts from Vietnam’s bronze age Dong Son culture at an exhibition in the Republic of Korea (RoK). The event focuses on three themes: “Pre-Dong Son Cultures”, “the Red River and Dong Son culture”, and “Cultures at metal age in central and southern Vietnam”. On display are materials depicting the spiritual lives of the Dong Son people, their main economic industries (rice cultivation and metallurgy and bronze casting) and items related to the founding of the first state-Van Lang. Special artefacts showcased include a bronze drum, bronze jar, jewellery, and hunting tools. The Dong Son culture develops directly from pre-Dong Son cultures in the Red River, Ma River and Lam River valleys in northern Vietnam. It dated from the 7th century BC to the 1st century AD. The organizing board said that the exhibition running until September 10, gives Korean and international friends an insight into Vietnam’s long-standing cultural and historical traditions. The next exhibition on Dong Son culture will be staged in the RoK’s Naju National Museum. Exhibition helps raise youngsters’ patriotism Hundreds of photos, documents and archives confirming Vietnam’s sea and island sovereignty are being put on show at an ongoing exhibition in the northern province of Hai Duong. Several objects expose China’s illegal placement of its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 in Vietnam’s waters, which has incurred a strong storm of protests both domestically and globally. The event helps raise locals’ patriotism and determination, especially among the youngsters, to safeguard the nation’s sacred sovereignty over seas and islands. It runs from July 14 to August 10. Vietnamese navy’s first victory on photo display A series of photos capturing seas, islands and naval soldiers are put on display in the central province of Nghe An, as part of celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the first victory by the Vietnam People’s Navy. On August 2-5, 1964, the Vietnamese navy attacked the US destroyer Maddox in the Tonkin Gulf, shot down eight aircraft and arrested the first US pilot Everett Alvarez in northern Vietnam, starting the force’s tradition of “Winning the first battle”. The display also vividly reflects the significance of sea and islands to Vietnam’s development, and the modernisation of the navy today. On the occasion, the province also introduced a collection 60 photos featuring its contributions to the victory and the nationwide cause of safeguarding sacred sovereignty over seas and islands. The exhibition will run from July 12-17. Exhibition reflects HCM City painters' patriotism The Ho Chi Minh City-based painters and cartoonists are expressing their patriotism about Vietnam's sovereignty through works on display at the city's Fine Arts Museum. Bao Ve Bien Gioi – Bien Dao (Defend Vietnamese Borders and Seas) showcases 48 paintings and cartoons created by 35 members of the city's Fine Arts Association. Ma Thanh Cao, director of the museum, said the paintings reflected the painters' feelings about the country's independence, peace and sustainable development. The exhibition features images of soldiers guarding the country's sea waters as well as works depicting fishermen protecting their offshore ships to safeguard Vietnam's sovereignty in the East Sea. It also includes copies of four old maps that show the country's sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly). The event will remain open until July 17. After the opening in the city, the exhibition will be moved to municipal colleges and universities, and the neighbouring provinces of Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Dong Nai and Binh Duong. Venezuelan, Vietnamese artisans share traditional knowhow Artisans from the Phu Vinh rattan and bamboo craft village in Hanoi on July 11 learnt about weaving techniques used by Venezuela's Warao indigenous people. At a workshop in Hanoi, Warao artisan Lilisbeth Aguilera shared with her Vietnamese peers the traditional weaving techniques that Warao people use to create many products including bags, hats, slippers, baskets and jewellery. All the products are made from natural materials such as water hyacinth, fibrous plant curagua and seeds. Araceli Garcia Reyes, director of the Venezuelan National Centre of Handicrafts and Fine Arts, informed the workshop of the handicrafts produced by different tribal groups living in Venezuela. She also spoke about her government's policies to support Venezuelan artists to preserve and develop their skills, which contribute significantly to the multi-ethnic culture of the country. Vietnamese painter and expert on handicrafts and fine arts Vu Hy Thieu also spoke at the workshop, which was part of an ongoing exhibition of Venezuelan handicraft products at the Vietnam Exhibition Centre for Culture and Arts. Source: VNS/VNA/VOV