Photojournal - 2016
This is a collection of photos capturing the objects and people along the roadsides of Hanoi Highway- the oldest and once the biggest highway in Vietnam. It was part of an assignment for my Photography class at university. I chose the highway as the subject for the assignment, for its beautiful urban scenes and vibrant colours had already been an obsession of mine for many years. The photos were taken during my one day walk on the highway in December 2011, to record as much as I could the the shapes, the colours and the energy that was so unique and special to me.
Funded by the US investment and designed by its engineers in the 60s, Hanoi Highway was created as part of a larger urban development strategy for Saigon – the capital of the old Republic of Vietnam. It was constructed with the intention of transforming its surroundings into an industrial site near the city center, serving as a link between the production site and the city’s huge source of consumers. Being half a century old, the highway had witnessed many key events during the war, including the final attempt of the South Vietnamese army to repel the advance of its Northern opponent before the Liberation of Saigon (or the Fall of Saigon, depending on which history book one studied from). In my high school years, the highway used to be part of my one-hour bus route every Monday morning. What I saw were sequences of the most vibrant colours, the boldest shapes. Those beautiful images of the machines and the hard-working people, constant-changing and framed perfectly by the bus window, still remains to be my most favourite scenes even until now.
At the time of the photoshoot, there was a renovation plan for the highway in order to solve the problem of congestions, also to prepare for the transformation of its surroundings into a high-end residential zone, with luxurious apartment building and shops. Land clearance was being carried out on both sides of the highway and the locals were starting to move out, leaving behind sites of half-torn-down houses. I suppose it was the contrast between such lifeless sights and the energy of those still working hard everyday, focusing on their job despite the chaotic changes around that attracted me all along.
Over 15 kilometres of walking under the sun and its unapologising heat, the thick dust and thundering sound of the big trucks passing by, it was properly one of the most exhausting days in my life. However, being able to meet this fascinating group of people, their candidness, witty humour and their high spirit made every single minute worth it. A few years later, I realised that the landscape had changed drastically, and almost all the scenes featured in this journal no longer exist after the renovation finished. I decided then to collect the best images, the small talks, everything that I could and put them inside this small booklet, treating it like my old window on the bus years ago, through which a strange beauty once captured my heart.