“Duyên” (English: Destined encounter, Chinese: 緣 yuán) is a noun, a verb, an adjective, a feeling, a spell, a sound, a space. Duyên is a character, a sign, a moment, a fantasy, etc. ba-bau (contemporarily) is an independent art residency, studio and kitchen located in the center of Hanoi, founded in Jan 2019. Focusing on “Duyên” concept, ba-bau connects, supports, incubates and pushes the multi & interdisciplinary collaboration through organizing and moderating experiments and conversations between practitioners with practitioners and practitioners with experts coming from other fields.
key-words: kitchen, kitchen culture, experiment, invading and transforming the existing spaces, intimate space, safe and cozy space for questions & conversations
To facilitate the spirit of duyên, we keep our space in a state of impermanence in which each room’s characteristics and functions can flexibly be changed as needed to suit different circumstances. The default configuration includes 2 bedrooms, 1 kitchen and dining room, 1 studio.
However, each room can be and had been reconfigured to serve any of the following functions: film screening, artist talk, working studio, exhibition, residency, dining, performing stage and others…
Thao-Linh Dinh / founder
Dinh Thao Linh is an independent art manager and curator in Hanoi who works with space, community and focuses on exchanges. In 2019, she founded ba-bau AIR - an intimate artist-in-residence space with a kitchen, coffee table, dining room and studio. She also experiments with haircuts, poetry writing, and other multidisciplinary practices.
Kieu-Anh Nguyen
Kieu-Anh Nguyen (Kanh) is a Vietnamese art practitioner based in Hanoi, Vietnam. She concerns about exploring the boundaries of the ephemeral senses, spiritual limbos, dreams, and experiences them by painting, olfactory art and performing. She is expanding her field of work by experimenting with different mediums, notably artisanal gelato crafting.
Cao Việt Nga / space manager
Cao Việt Nga works as a caretaker, spicy tester and space manager. She wants to challenge herself in organizing and filmmaking during this period.
Minh-Hoang Nguyen
Minh-Hoang Nguyen (b. 1992) takes an approach to photographic storytelling that is both conceptual and documentary. He creates fantastical self-portraits to connect with the world and its objects, people, ideas, and history. When not making self-portraits, Nguyen photographs the absurd drama of everyday life around him.
Nguyen earned his MFA in Experimental and Documentary Arts at Duke University in North Carolina, the U.S.A., where he produced Title Wanted, a project on the historical trauma of the Vietnam War, and Crimson Heart, a project on love. In 2017, he created You Are Here, a project about finding a sense of home. My Dear Solitude is his ongoing street series.
Chung Truong
Chung is a mixed bag. He works in the art and education sectors. At the same time, he makes music and maps. He with a special interest in exploring the relationships within - and between - landscapes.
The ba-bau team
With the collective way of working and being, other than the main members as listed above, we also maintain close personal and professional relationships with friends such as Gờ Rào, Nguyễn Long Biên (@tl.metalsmith), Nguyễn Duy Anh (@vudieunongsay), Tuấn Minh, Duy Nguyễn, nhạc sĩ Nguyễn Xuân Sơn (SơnX), nhạc sĩ Hà Thúy Hằng, Nhật Q. Võ; along with friends, neighbors and organizations such as Bến Tàu Ngầm, Queer Forever, Bàn Lộn (Vaginal Talks) / Một Bảo Tàng Queer, Nhà Sàn Collective, Undecided Productions, Heritage Space, Sao La Collective, Then Cafe etc.
We greatly appreciate the expertise, emotional and experience that our friends and acquaintances share. The spirit of the collective precedes the founding of the collective.