Contemporary art in folk festivals

      Restoring folk festivals through the use of contemporary art is an audacious project being implemented by the Institute for Culture and Art of Vietnam.
Interactive, modern styles of contemporary art will be highlighted at a ceremony of the Lanh Giang Temple Festival in the northern city of Hanoi on July 23.
The performance of three contemporary artists – Phuong Vu Manh, Vu Nhat Tan and Pham Van Truong – of a legend about the saints of Lanh Giang temple will see a combination of imaginative, music and performance effects.
Around 20 artists will paint dragons, the symbols of the four seasons and four supernatural creatures (dragon, unicorn, tortoise and phoenix) on the bodies of the three performers.
Dr. Bui Quang Thang, the writer of the Lanh Giang festival script, said this will be the first traditional festival to feature contemporary art.
Thang said that the presence of young artists and modern art techniques would not affect the identity of a traditional festival. Other elements of the festival will be maintained in their original forms.