VUUV designs an ephemeral bamboo shell for fashion exhibition in ho chi minh city

VUUV architecture office was invited by fashion designer, nguyen cong tri, to create a temporary architecture installation alongside nine other artworks for the CUC IM LANG exhibition of fashion & contemporary arts in ho chi minh city, vietnam. to celebrate the fashion designer’s 20th year in the industry, the 10 works of art, created by 10 artists from various art sectors, interacted with 10 different collections designed by nguyen cong tri. 

images courtesy of khoi le

representing the field of architecture, VUUV designed an installation of ephemeral architecture for the event. ‘from our viewpoint, fashion, like architecture, is the ‘shell’ to protect people. fashion is also known as the first ‘house’ that surrounds the body. depending on the morphology and materials, both of these industries directly affect the physiology of people, and they are obviously two arts that are culturally unique’, says VUUV.

the third collection of cong tri is directed towards the structure of natural materials – yet the materials are no longer purely wild plants, they have been modified and transformed by humans during the development of society. in order to interact with this fashion collection, VUUV wanted to build upon the natural materials which are traditionally used in architectural practice to create new perspectives. the final installation is composed of three wall layers made of bamboo with three different knitting structures, which were all made by traditional vietnamese craft villages.

these layers of walls are structured and arranged to become the language of architecture. they create three experience spaces to guide and direct visitors to different emotions, not only visually but also using the scent and texture of the bamboo material. the journey through the walls makes the architectural artwork serve as a foundation for the fashion pieces, but as visitors venture deeper, the natural material of the walls seems to return to its wild nature. at this point, fashion and architecture interact and seem to converge into one.

project info:

project name: CUC IM LANG exhibition

location: SECC, dist. 7, ho chi minh city, vietnam

client: fashion designer nguyen cong tri

architect: VUUV architecture and interior design

design team: vu hoang son, vu hoang ha, phi van dung, nguyen binh minh

year: 2019

photography: khoi le

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom