UuDam Tran NGUYEN

Born 1971 in Kon Tum, Vietnam
Based in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

After graduating from an art university in Ho Chi Minh, Nguyen moved to the United States to study art in Los Angeles and New York. With his transnational experiences as a cornerstone, he produces work using diverse means including films of choreographed performances, sculpture, and interactive drawing via smartphones and the Internet. Taking a bird's-eye view of his own place of origin and background, he focuses on primarily on the changing cityscape and societal problems of Ho Chi Minh, addressing issues like religion, gender, minority and diaspora issues, geopolitics, urbanization, and industrialization in a humorously tinged manner. In his film of a large group of people in vividly colored ponchos riding motorcycles around Ho Chi Minh, the footage is coordinated to a soundtrack of music by Russian (former Soviet) composer Dmitri Shostakovich, creating a stunning impact and evoking a wide range of associations.