To this Saigon artist, 'technology' is not just for nerds

By VnExpress   March 18, 2017 | 10:26 pm PT
Find yourself a marketplace for 'Likes' in this collection of hybrids.

Ho Chi Minh City is considered a rising new tech hub, and this artist has a cool way to prove it.

Remember the artist who gave superstar treatment to a Saigon street vendor's font? He happens to be running another Instagram project called Saigonemoji, where he puts photos of the city into a social media context.

“In 2015, I heard that "emoji" had been chosen as Word of the Year by Oxford Dictionaries,” Maxk Nguyen, a Ho Chi Minh City-based artist, told VnExpress International about the day the idea struck him. “With emojis becoming so prevalent in modern society, I thought: 'Why don’t I mix those “tech” icons with symbols of daily life in Saigon?' And that’s how Saigonemoji was born.”

Maxk proceeded to capture random photos of his beloved city and combine them with distinctive features of major social networks such Twitter and Facebook. The results? Hilarious illustrations of Saigon in a modern light.

Maxk is preparing an exhibition for his Saigonemoji collection later this year. In the meantime, check out some of his cool works below.

Set a pickup location for your xe om, motorbike taxi.

"Sale: VND50,000 ($2) for half a kg of "likes"?" the caption reads.

42 Nguyen Hue Street, which is about to be demolished.

"You've got mail."

An abandoned million-dollar property project.

Conversations on stools.

Setting privacy.

Adult only content.

Who else wants some "likes"?

A low-calorie breakfast (with herbs).

Lost in translation.

"Waiting for the driver," reads the caption.

"We all need more time."

In the light of Mid-Autumn Festival.

Fully charged!

Happy Valentine's Day!

In the meantime, somewhere in the city.

Maxk Nguyen, the artist behind the scenes and in front of the screen.

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