I am honoured to talk with you and share about Vietnam's traditional dress – as well as my original culture.
Áo Dài is a special traditional dress of my country –Viet Nam but Vietnamese Áo Dài is not only a kind of national dress but also contains a rich history, cultural traditions, aesthetic conceptions, national consciousness and spirit of the Vietnamese people. Through many changes in society and times, it has always been a beautiful symbol of the national culture, and the pride of Vietnamese people. The soft, gentle and discreet beauty of the Vietnamese Áo Dài is shown by its high neck, soft round shoulders and two graceful sleeves. One day, I was asked by many foreign friends about it, but, unfortunately, I hadn't taken many pictures of the Áo Dài. So I decided to start a project (365 Days with Áo Dài) to shoot traditional Áo Dài based on unique traditional and modern values.
In the past few decades, many designers have innovated it. Among them, there were many designs that became a disaster and destroyed the images of Áo Dài in my eyes. At the same time, it has fallen into cultural appropriation. For me, it is both an adjective and a noun. The Áo Dài just evokes rustic, simple, seductive Vietnamese women and contains many memories.