Signs of Saigon is documenting and investigating on urban typography in Saigon and beyond. When working at RMIT Vietnam, Saigon South Campus, I had the chance to turn my passion into an academic research project, focussing on the „visual identity of the city“. Visit the project website: signsofsaigon.com Hand painted signs are an important part in the development of our visual culture, but almost extinct in European city centres. They are on the list of endangered species in many countries around the world, replaced by digitally manufactured and often globally standardised signs. This also applies to Vietnam and even more to it’s economic power center Ho Chi Minh City – former Saigon. I want to take you on a journey to your own history and Saigons’ in particular. I have identified a unique cultural treasure and have documented local handwriting and hand painted signs on the streets of Vietnam, Saigon – but also in local markets outside the beaten track of tourism or romantic Indochine pictures. With my careful approach of these everyday signs, I want to reveal their artistic power and beauty. Within my research project I investigated on their style, identifying the Graphic DNA that unites them. And my academic approach takes you even further. I am honouring these pieces of art and cultural heritage by paying a visit to the unknown artists in their late years. My discussions and findings preserve a part of the beauty of Vietnam that is vanishing on a daily basis. This picture was taken at Bình Tây Market, Chợ Lớn, District 6 in Saigon, Vietnam on November 10, 2016, a few days before the market closed for renovation. The signage no longer exists today. Project: Signs of Saigon, documenting and investigating on urban typographyContribution: Field trips, photography, interviews, literature researchYears: 2016 – ongoingPartially funded by RMIT Vietnam, Saigon South Campus
Urban Typography in Saigon
Saigon is a mega city with probably 10 million people, the economic center of a socialist republic with a capitalist market economy, formerly French colonialised. Saigon is a city of contrasts, a city with a moving history and a city that is almost overtaking itself on the way to the future. All this can be seen in the cityscape, in the architecture, in the markets, but also in the typography in the urban space. Project: Documentation of typographical events in urban spaceDiscoveries and investigations on the topic of „handwriting“ Contribution: Idea, field trips, photography, Instagram AccountYear: 2015, ongoing