{"id":203,"date":"2024-11-30T15:23:42","date_gmt":"2024-11-30T20:23:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artspace.thecreativeschool.torontomu.ca\/?p=203"},"modified":"2025-10-27T08:50:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T12:50:07","slug":"black-belts-on-bach-ma-mountain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artspace.thecreativeschool.torontomu.ca\/?p=203","title":{"rendered":"Black Belts on Bach Ma Mountain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Black Belts on<\/strong><\/strong>
Bach Ma Mountain<\/strong><\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

\u0110ai \u0110en tr\u00ean N\u00fai B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Tr\u00e2m Anh Nguy\u1ec5n<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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September 23rd – November 2nd, 2024<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Opening Reception: October 3rd, 2024, 6-9PM<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cFor a colonized people the most essential value, because the most concrete, is first and foremost the land: the land which will bring them bread and, above all, dignity\u201d (<\/em>Frantz Fanon, The Wretched of the Earth).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tr\u00e2m Anh Nguy\u1ec5n\u2019s solo show, Black Belts on Bach Ma Mountain (\u0110ai \u0110en tr\u00ean N\u00fai B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3)<\/strong>, lenses the B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3 mountains that have long stood as a symbol of Vietnam\u2019s rich biodiversity and the country\u2019s historical significance. Once a French colonial retreat, the mountains later became a battleground during the wars for independence and against American colonial forces. The land still bears the scars of bombings and chemical defoliants, with both people and the environment suffering long-term effects. Yet, B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3 remains a powerful symbol of restoration. In 2022, Nguy\u1ec5n joined and documented 280 Karate-do students on a 3-day trek to the summit, led by Master Nguy\u1ec5n V\u0103n D\u0169ng, marking his final journey with the group. The students not only tested their endurance but also deepened their connection to the earth, honoring the land\u2019s legacy of resistance and renewal. Nguy\u1ec5n\u2019s documentation of the students\u2019 journey highlights B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3\u2019s legacy as both a memorial to those lost in Vietnam\u2019s struggles and a reminder of the collective responsibility to nurture the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJoanna Macy writes that until we can grieve for our planet we cannot love it\u2014grieving is a sign of spiritual health. But it is not enough to weep for our lost landscapes; we have to put our hands in the earth to make ourselves whole again. Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift\u201d (<\/em>Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass).<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Tr\u00e2m Anh Nguy\u1ec5n (he\/him) is an interdisciplinary artist specializing in filmmaking and photography based in Vietnam and Canada. Binding documentation & storytelling across mediums, his work aims to look with a softened gaze, revealing universal themes woven together of tenderness, longing, hope, gentleness, resilience, and memory. He wishes to continue in creating more projects that reflect on the intricate politics of gender & culture, and exploring his queer-trans identity in interconnection with his Vietnamese roots. His first solo exhibition Hoa<\/em> (2022) was a multi-media installation of a short film and a poem honoring his b\u00e0 n\u1ed9i (paternal grandmother) who was gradually losing her memory. He\u2019s participated in various group exhibitions; one recently was Nh\u00e0 (Home)<\/em> in 2024 at Manzi Art Space in Hanoi, with his short film Th\u00e2n Th\u1ec3 R\u1eebng Thi\u00eang (Landscape of Our Body)<\/em>, being a meditation on queerness, ecology, and ancestral healing in relation to the collective trauma of the Vietnamese diaspora. His short films have been in local and international film festivals and screenings such as TIFF Next Wave, Pleasure Dome, TATE x Otherness Archive, and InsideOut Film Festival.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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