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Saigon has long been the muse for photographers and filmmakers for its vibrant culture and extraordinary diversity. And in the eyes of Bao Zoan, a 26-year-old Saigon-based photographer, the beauty of the city emerges from different layers of life.
"In my seven years living in Saigon, apart from the first tough months, the city has always embraced me," Bao told VnExpress International. "It has taught me what the real world is and how difficult it is to live in a multi-cultural environment. But it also awoke my curiosity, making me wonder even more about what is going on in life and what else I have not seen. That became the inspiration for me to go out there and start to feel the beats of Saigon with my camera lens."
“I taught myself photography starting with taking pictures on my phone. Then I devoted more spare time to walking around the city to look for special corners and moments."
Born in Dong Nai Province, Bao moved to Ho Chi Minh City in 2009 to work as a mechanical engineer. It was not until March 2013 that he managed to save enough money to buy his first camera to pursue his passion for photography.
Bao Zoan's latest photo series is featured in Saigon Artbook 6th Edition, a non-profit contemporary artbook series that introduces artists that were born and/or are living in Vietnam's southern metropolis.
The project curator, gallerist Shyevin S’ng, who's been living in the city for 11 years said she was impressed by the unique way the young photographer documents the modernization process. “Bao works on old moments of Saigon, the transformation of the old and the new, and people living in the old time of Sigon. It is just beautiful to see it’s captured.”
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