New Year - fresh new look!

If you haven't already received an Email, a Facebook post, a Jacquie Lawson e-card, a Pinterest update or a Skype call from me............................

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Last year was a very good year indeed for my work; I had three solo exhibitions and two group exhibitions and y drawings and paintings have sold very well indeed. 

It was great to go back to the UK after 3 years of absence. Seeing friends, family and familiar landscapes again was very, very uplifting. There wasn't nearly enough time to do everything I wanted but I will be home again this summer and will have more time.

My big project for ummer 2016 will be to produce a collection of new etchings and linocuts - something I cannot do in Vietnam becuase they don't have the right technology.  I will base myself in Northumberland and use a print workshop in Newcastle to get the work done.

I have lots of new things to show you for 2016. 

First of all, my web site has a complete make-over. It has a fresh new look with new links and there are lots of new items for sale in my online shop.

I launched it yesterday and this morning my mailboxes were full of great feedback from all quarters.   Click HERE to go straight there and have a look.

Let me know what you think. If you like it - then why not share it with some friends by sending them the web address in an email or Facebook message

Next up - I have a brand new Facebook Page dedicated to my work. I will no longer be posting my work on my personal Facebook timeline, I will keep that just for personal photos, sharing videos and keeping up with friends. 

I post to my new Facebook page every single day so if you would like to see what I am working on simply visit the site, click on 'Like' and my arty stuff will be delivered to your phone or computer every morning.  Click HERE  to go straight to my new, professional Facebook Page.  Unlike Facebook timelines, Facebook pages are completely anonymous so no-one can see that you are connected to it in any way.

I have joined Instagram - I still struggle with it - it is not the most intuitive app. I have ever used but It is up and running and I will learn to love it - Haha!

Click HERE to see my first snaps

That's it for now. I love being able to share things with you through this blog.  Please let me know if you have any new links or addresses to share with me. What exciting new websites or apps do you use that you think I might like?  email me: bammbah@hotmail.co.uk

My new professional Facebook Page

On a recent visit to Hoi An, I stayed with my charismatic, young French photographer friend Rehahn (Rehahn's web site/) and his lovely family in their quiet house on a strand of land between two rivers and next to the Vegetable gardens of Tra Que. Itis one of the most idyllic places imaginable. 

We talk about all kinds of things. He smokes impossibly large and expensive Cuban cigars which he buys on his frequent visits to the island to record its faded glory. I drink chilled red wine which, straight from the fridge, is as close to European 'room temperature' as we can manage here in the tropics!

Recently, we made a break through. We have resolved to start a self-publishers' cooperative together with Elka Ray (http://elkaray.com/) to help promote and distribute the work of writers, photographers (of course) and artists ( of course!). It looks like I am going to be part of a Vietnamese company - bring it on!

Anyway, he said I have to stop publishing pictures of my work on my personal Facebook and separate business from politics and pleasures. How could I argue with that?

So, I have a new Facebook page and I need all the support I can get. I will no longer be posting pictures of my work on my personal Facebook page .......... that will be reserved for politics, parties, pleasures and photo-opportunities.

Please, please 'like' my new business facebook page. It's anonymous. You will not have to be my friend. You CAN comment on my work and you CAN keep up with new publications, and news of exhibitions and the work of other new, exciting artists who also struggle to capture the light, the heat and the people of the tropics.

Please click here............My new Facebook page

THe name of our new collective is Books 4 Asia. I will keep you posted.

Flying colours - the temple flags of Vietnam

Flying Colours

Traditional flags in Vietnam

Flags have been used to communicate meanings, directions and identities for over 6,000 years. The earliest known is a bronze relic from Iran dated around 4,000bc.

I never thought much about the meanings of flags until I moved to Vietnam where flags are far more common than in my native England.  Neighbourhoods are transformed on festival and national holiday days by the brilliant  red and yellow national flags and are sometimes festooned with striped bunting which is strung from post to post in the vicinity of temples.

The National Flag with its red ground and yellow star takes its styling from the Soviet ‘hammer and sickle’ flag which also includes a yellow star. In Vietnam, the star represents the five sections of society; the farmers, intellectuals, factory workers, businessmen and the military. Yellow is the colour of the Vietnamese people and red is universally used to signify revolution, strength and courage.  In the alleys and narrow streets of Hanoi, a few scarlet and yellow flags projecting from balconies and upper story windows instantly injects a feeling of national pride and celebration.

The large temple flags with the jagged or toothed edges make a bold statement don’t they. These are Buddhist in origin but have been adopted more widely within the special blend of religion and ancestor worship practiced in Vietnam. The flags outside a large temple will each have a different colour for the central square. Blue is the colour of compassion, yellow is balance, red is for the blessings of Buddha’s teaching, orange is for wisdom and white represents purity and liberation. 

The size of the flag will denote the importance of the site, ancient temples display much larger flags than more modern or lesser temples and meeting houses. Sometimes you will see a small flag outside someone’s home – this usually indicates that there is a monk resident within. So, don’t display Buddhist flags at your house unless you want the neighbours to bring offerings to your door!

Triangular flags mark the route to the home of the deceased during the funeral week. Black and white is often used for these flags in Hanoi. In Hoi An and Da Nang I saw maroon and dark blue and ochre to mark these sad occasions.

Small striped and squared flags will lead the way to the temple door. The closer to the temple, the larger the flags become. Once inside the temple enclosure, the positioning of flags around main courtyard convey meanings about festivals or other temple events. Usually, a yellow flag representing the sun occupies a central position, Blue and green flags representing nature and sky will be in the eastern corners. A white flag for the moon and metal will be in the west and black or indigo in the north represent water.

For parades, the flags take on even more meanings. The red flag representing the Phoenix should take the lead. Behind that the dark turtle is flanked by the Blue dragon to the left and the white tiger to the right. These complex messages are easily read by locals, but I just marvel at the spectacle and now I know never to pass a massive temple flag without stopping to explore the ancient temple within.

2016 Calendar available now

A3, flip style wall calendar - spiral bound. One month per page.

Visit my shop to purchase: 

https://bridget-march.myshopify.com/products/2016-calendar

Taking it slow in Saigon

There is a famous temple in Cho Lon that I have visited more times than I can count. It's the one the oldest and most visited in that district.  The Thien Hau pagoda is an evocative place that is worth lingering in for an hour or so and, on a hot day in district 5, it provides a cooling retreat from that bustling community of traders and dealers.

To get a good view of this 18th century pagoda you need to stand across the street. From there you can see all the details on the roof which features gorgeously glazed, ceramic dioramas of feasts, battles, traders,  demons, dignitaries, actors and merchants from other continents all set against creatively modelled Chinese houses, palaces and shops. It is incredible that these old ceramics have survived the ravages of weather and time to look as beautiful as the day they were created.  

From this side of the street you see this magical old temple through a moving wall of roaring traffic, with street cafes to right and left. Bird sellers with chirruping caged sparrows are completely inaudible above the din of motorbikes and taxis that trundle by, kicking up the dust and spewing diesel fumes.

Pick up a cold drink, and when the lights stop the traffic, you can slip across the road and into the forecourt of Thien Hau Pagoda. Now, the scale of this precious building becomes apparent and with two more steps you walk through a solid granite doorway into another world. A hush descends and you are in a place where everything is sacred, where civic pride and community endeavour meet  the gods and ancestors, where all the richness of the lives of the residents of Cho Lon can be seen.

On the walls of the first, inner courtyard there are some unusual  friezes, possibly from the 1970s depicting modern buildings, factories, a school, the interior of an elegant house. Maybe built by local philanthropists and entrepreneurs, these places must be very important  to the community here.  I can't image such urbane images being installed in a religious building in Europe.  How different Westerners are from Asians in this regard.

The central , covered yard of the pagoda is hung with incense coils sending prayers and wishes out to deities and forebears, the spirals of smoke captured in vertical rays of sunlight that penetrate the gaps between roofs.  

The colourful ceramic frieze continues around the rim of each courtyard; the stories are from history and Chinese mythology create an imaginary world where fact and fiction co-exist. If  you take a seat and linger in this cool space for  20 minutes, you will also see the two aspects of  contemporary Cho Lon; the locals quietly carrying on with their religious rituals and the foreign visitors gawping at the overwhelming visual feast as they snap photos and wonder at the richness that surrounds them.

If you step in to an ante-room to the right there is yet another delight that has little to do with religion or ancestors but adds to the eclectic mix of incense coils, bronze-faced deities, relief friezes of factories, a 19th century fire-fighting device and dioramas of ancient fables. On the walls are large watercolour paintings of the twelve animals of the zodiac; each one a masterpiece. 

The animal of the year, the goat at the moment, is topped with a red garland and rosette. There are rows of elegant Chinoiserie chairs so you can take a seat to appreciate this unique gallery and decide which is your favourite. 

One thing is for sure; this pagoda is not for rushing. 

New art classes for 2015.

After a year of wandering around Vietnam and letting all the whispers of Hoi An, the shadows of Hanoi and the hearts of Sapa wash over and through me, I am back in this city I love so much. I love its energy, I laugh at its relentless noise and it laughs at me as a totter around on my electric bike looking for adventure! We are well suited I think.

I am based in Thao Dien and am busy trying to publish two new books  about Sapa and Saigon. The artwork for Sapa is almost finished and I have started to write down my thoughts and experiences to tell the story of my four months in the mountains.

The artwork for the Saigon book is also, nearly finished but it has been in that state for over a year now!!!  The problem is that the city keeps shape shifting. They are building an underground train network and roads have now started to disappear, buildings too and now, there is a massive, landmark statue on the move. It makes a writers job very difficult! Ha ha! 

I am happy to be giving art lessons again and I am taking on some new challenges for 2015. the first is a series of lessons about portraits. We will be experiencing that journey in Watercolour but the lessons apply to oils and acrylics just the same.

Well, nearly the same. Oils are far more obedient than watercolours. Watercolour is a a greater intellectual challenge; it simply isn't forgiving and you have to learn to 'let go' in the Buddhist way.


The Watercolour Portrait Classes run every Tuesday afternoon 2-4 at Vin Space art studios and in each lesson we will tackle a new portrait and a new style until the last two when you will work on your own subjects. details will appear on the web site soon.




The Short Drawing Course will run in Phu My Hung, Ditrict 7 from 22nd January for 8 weeks, taking a 2 week break for Tet. I am still looking for somewhere to deliver these classes so bear with me. This has always been a popular course and has successfully helped lots of students to draw even when they had believed, for many years, they had no ability. 

I believe if you can write, you can draw

The Basic Watercolour Course will run in An Phu, District 2 from January 21st - every Wednesday morning 9.30- 11.30 am. There will be a 2 week break for Tet. The price of this course includes all you materials so it is very good value.

Adult Painting classes which have been running in District 2 for a number of years, are being extended to Phu My hung which is good news. I don't know when these will start because we haven't found the ideal premises yet. Again, if you know of anywhere, let me know.

Drop me an email for prices, the curricula and more details. I will be delighted to hear from you.

Absentia

My goodness it has been weeks since I last posted so I had better give you a whistle stop tour through the past four or five weeks.

On Saturday 10th May, to mark the end of my 7 months in Hoi An, I had an exhibition of my work at Ami Galerie in the beautiful old quarter of the town. The gallery is at 46 Nguyen Thai Hoc, in a listed building that will have, originally, been a merchant's home or a 'shop house'. It is a beautiful structure constructed of wooden pillars and beams. It floods to a depth of about a metre every year during the wet season so there are hatches in the ground floor ceiling to make it quick and easy to lift everything up to the first floor for dry storage.

I had lots of helpers on the morning of the exhibition to get everything framed, labelled and hung. Here are Pandy and Susan doing the framing. 

Here is Tuan (too-an), the artist from the space next door who is helping My (mee) with the technical complexities of our French-styled framing system.   On the right you can see My talking to Mikayla and Asia who are labelling all the pictures.

It was a veritable hive of activity and everyone joined in so enthusiastically. Unfortunately, Pandy had to fly back to England that afternoon so she missed the opening party that evening. 

The launch party was great! About 60 people came along and I sold 7 pieces of work. Considering how small Hoi An is and how few tourists there in town (because of the Chinese drilling rig dramas), I think it's not bad. The press and a TV crew turned up and I appeared on Saigon TV the next evening! 

Hoa serves her delicious drinks and cakes

Two children play in the doorway after their art class

Over the next two weeks, very few people came through the doors of the exhibition and no further work was sold but I got to know the local children and enjoyed the quiet streets of Hoi An.




This is the view from Ami Galerie through to the old courtyard that is used by Tuan to display some of his paintings. On Saturdays, he give free art classes to local children, in the space upstairs. 

Next ................

I cleared out the lovely little house we had been living in, stored my boxes and cases and flew down to Saigon to make some progress with my next book with my lovely Graphic Designer, Ani Petrova. Whenever I see her she always gives me more work to do that I ever I've her!  How does that work?!!  I left with a list of jobs to do while she is in France this summer. Ha ha!  The drawings are almost complete so now i must write the stories that will make the next book come alive.

Whilst there, I received a phone call from Heritage magazine (the inflight glossy for Vietnam Airlines) asking me to write an article about Hoi An and send some examples of the paintings I did there. Fantastic! I only have 4 days to do the writing but I sent it off on time and hoped it would be ok.  Two weeks later, I heard that they loved the story (printed in English and Vietnamese) and had chosen a detail from one of my paintings for the front cover!!! 


This is the second time they have featured my work and it brings such a lot of enquiries for me. Thank you Heritage!

Back in Hoi An, I dismantled the exhibition, was paid for the work I sold and prepared to move to Sapa for four months to be the artist in residence for Sapa Rooms boutique hotel in the land of clouds and mountains.

A few months ago I met a fascinating novelist from Scotland - one A.D.Scott. After only three meetings, Deborah (her real name), introduced the idea that it may be interesting for me to go to Sapa for an extended stay and told me about her friend Pete who owns a hotel up there.  

Pete, an Australian who studied Japanese, Buddhism and Anthropology at a Japanese university, opened his first business, a small hotel in Sapa, after discovering a derelict building with a wonderful view near Sapa market.  He invited a Vietnamese artist to be his business partner and together they make amazing art, delicious food, connections with Sapa communities, and differences in the lives of children in the mountains. 

It is an inspiring business model that is truly based on that Utopian ideal that 'if you do the things you are passionate about, a successful business will emerge'. So, I went up to Hanoi to meet Pete and to listen to his stories. 



I discovered that he has always wanted to write a cookbook based on the recipes used in his businesses, that no-one has published a good pocket guide of Sapa, that they need some sort of sustainable income to pay for every day running costs at the school the sponsors.

So, in a moment of pure clarity, and with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc in hand, I volunteered to make some of those wishes come true. Pete puts a roof over my head ( and a goose down duvet) and good food to eat (prepared by his chefs) and all I have to do is draw, paint, talk, write and wander around discovering things........... sorry, what I really meant to say is, produce the drawings to illustrate his cook book and design and illustrate the pocket guide.  

These two items will be sold to fund his education projects. I am also going to work with the ethnic minority children to produce some artwork (hopefully) that will be turned into good things for the tourists to buy. Then, I am going to design some upmarket products for the women to make that can also be sold to fund young futures. 

We are calling these projects 'Art for Communities' and 'Are for Education'. I am so honoured to be involved in this work and proud to be associated with this exhilarating business that touches so many lives in different ways



Also................ my dear friend Jennie came all the way from Leeds (with her mate Mandy) to find out what the heck is keeping me away from home all these months ( 20 now!!! ........ that's  about 632 days ..... oh my word).   

We had a blast in Saigon then they went to Siem Reap while I went up to Hoi An where we met once more. Then I flew up to Hanoi where I met then two days later. We 'did' the town and saw some amazing countryside. Mandy flew home and then I brought Jennie up to Sapa for her final week accompanied by Mr. Sapa Rooms himself, Pete Wilkes. 

With Jennie by my side and with the aid of a Red Dao (red zow) guide we discovered the beautiful valleys, stepped with rice paddies and topped with rain forest, that runs south west from Fansipan mountain (Vietnam and Indochina's highest peak at 3,143 mfrs). Cloud swirls around these peaks and changes the weather from moment to moment. Sometimes you can see the glory of the whole valley and sometimes you can hardly see across the street! Often it rains and sometimes you are praying for a cooling breeze. At the moment the temperature is about 70-80 degrees every day even when it rains.

Jennie also brought a wealth of experience and practical ideas to help with Pete's educational ambitions for the local people. Her college is interested in forming partnerships in SE Asia and maybe she has met some of the kinds of people who can help to make that happen. The potential is overwhelming! 

So, forgive my absence - I have been distracted by some exciting projects!  

  

Love it or lose it

Central Phnom Phen

 In this part of the world, you don't have to look very hard to find evidence of the part played by France in Vietnam's history.  Many of the key buildings of state were erected by the French.

But, it wasn't until my visit to Phnom Penh, in Cambodia, that I became aware that there is some concern about the possible loss of the architectural heritage left by the French in South East Asia.  

That weekend I read, in the Phnom Penh Times, that there are two points of view when it comes to the older buildings there. One side values the history, culture and architectural beauty; the other values the real estate and the possible financial gain from redevelopment of the large city centre sites occupied by these 'grand old ladies' of architecture.

Decaying French architecture 

Of course, Saigon simply wouldn't have the same charm without the old Post Office, the Opera House, the old L'Hotel de Ville that is now home to the People's Committee.  Apart from the glory of their elegance that is evocative of another age, each one of these buildings has a fascinating story to tell.

The former Hotel de Ville - Saigon

L'Opera -Saigon

But there is a less conspicuous legacy of little merchants' shop houses that give the streets of Saigon their unique character. The oldest of these modest buildings are now 150.  

Some have been loved and maintained but many are suffering the ravages of time and crumbling or disappearing behind giant hoardings and modern concrete 'embellishments' and extensions. 

Central Post Office - Saigon

The three storey shop houses adjacent to Ben Thanh market (below)are an example of this kind of treatment. If the advertising companies, sign makers and property owners are allowed to continue defacing, disguising and disfiguring Saigon's architectural heritage, these buildings will be lost and the character of this iconic area will be changed forever.

As humans, we collect the memories and souvenirs of all the people and events that have influenced or changed our lives. It is the nature of people to want to hold on to some aspects of the past - it can give us a sense of belonging and it confirms out identities. 

For this reason, many people are unsettled by too much loss and change. Our favourite cities are just like people, they are a collection of souvenirs that represent all the different cultures, religions, political regimes, nationalities and trends all leave their traces behind as they pass through. These traces remind us who we are.

Many townscapes in the west have suffered at the hands of careless town planners who erased neighbourhoods and demolished old buildings in their town centres to make way for modern, concrete shopping malls and car parks. The wounds left behind have, still, not healed. People can feel demoralised and lose their sense of place. Sometime 'we just don't know what we have lost until it is gone'. 

But cities that have cherished their unique tapestry of architectural styles through the ages are warm, vibrant, welcoming and interesting to all.  Those who have filled their towns with concrete are regretting the loss of history now. 

Former shop houses in Singapore's city centre

In Singapore, properties like the old merchant houses that line the broad avenues of Saigon, are being renovated and turned into comfortable homes by young professionals. Maybe it will be a while before the young Vietnamese develop a taste for this style of living.  In the mean time, it is everyone's duty to preserve this cultural and architectural heritage so it can be enjoyed by the next generations.

Upcoming Christmas Exhibition

I am taking part in this year's exhibition of 'Small Things' at Vin Gallery; their annual show of smaller works of original art in time for Christmas. 

Published in the May issue of Oi Vietnam, this was my very first magazine column. 
Read the story here

This is still, probably, my favourite postcard and was originally produced to illustrated the Full Moon Festival in my book about Hoi An.

This postcard illustrated my column in the July 2013 issue of Oi Vietnam which tells the story of my first shopping experiences in a local wet market when buying ingredients for a slightly ambitious Vietnamese birthday feast!
I addressed it to Rick Stein, the chef and restauranteur in Padstow, England

Oi Vietnam Magazine

This postcard was published in my book 'A Week in Hoi An' and shows the view of the Cham Islands from An Bang beach on a spring day. This is address to a little friend who likes to visit this beach from time to time.





The story about the magic and mystery of the My Son ruins was published in the June issue of Oi Vietnam Magazine. The memory of this evocative and poignant trip still haunts me.

Oi Vietnam on Facebook

If you take the late overnight sleeper train from Saigon to Da Nang, you are awoken by the breakfast trolley at dawn just before the train arrives in Nha Trang. 

From this point on the train hugs the coastline and you can watch the sun rise over the many islands scattered along the coast of the East Sea. Oi Vietnam Magazine, August 2013 issue.

This is addressed to my friend Robert who loves travelling by train.

Addressed to the late Antoni Gaudi, architect of Barcelona, this postcard illustrates some of the lovely shop houses of Saigon. One day these shops will be as fashionable to live in as their counterparts in Singapore.

Oi Vietnam Magazine - September 2013

Vietnam skies are amazingly beautiful. the colours are off the scale for depth of hue and luminosity. because the land is so flat along Vietnam's coastal, delta and southern regions, you can see weather coming for miles and miles. If you stand on Thu Thiem Bridge on a changeable day, you can see rain storms happening in different districts of the city and feel the rush of wind that preceeds every shower that is going to drench you! Read the article

I addressed this postcard to my sister who loves changeable weather and lives under her own big sky in Lincolnshire in England.

So, pop along to Vin Gallery on Friday evening to see these little gems in the flesh. They are beautifully framed in mahogany with double glass and floating mount. they would make a lovely present to a friend or even to yourself!

Generations

Generations

This painting is from my forthcoming exhibition '365' at Vin in Gallery, 6 Le Van Mien, District 2. The private view is on September 6th, exactly one year since I arrived. The exhibition opens to the public on the first day of my second year. 

If you can come and join the celebrations - you will be very welcome. there will be wine and canapes, a traditional Vietnamese musician and.......... of course........ cake!

I captured this scene on a visit to Ba Chieu Market in District 3. So far, this is my favourite covered market in Saigon because it's not overwhelmingly huge, tight packed or crowded and the gaps between stalls are wide enough for the average westerner to walk through without turning sideways. 

This is a locals market ;not for the tourist. I found all manner of things I had never seen before which reassured me that I really am half way round the globe in a strange and foreign land where none of the rules of home apply. Outside, an elegant and slightly stern looking lady was selling betel leaves wrapped around areca nuts. the older generations like to chew these to enjoy a mild stimulant effect. The addition of white or pink limestone powder can enhance the flavour and stain the teeth an attractive shade of Dracula red!

It was also near the market that I found the Chinese herbalist from whom I bought my precious ginseng stash. Here he is heating the root (straight from his ice box) to slice it into translucent wafer which I can nicely tuck in the corner of my mouth, for 30 minutes,and wait for the pungent  enzymes to slip into my bloodstream. 

I must g back form some of his brain numbing Ginseng wine!

As we walked through the market a colony of bats was pointed out to me - suspended in the rafters of the market roof away from the light of day and directly above a narrow passage where roosters and hens roamed free!

So, back to my painting. I stood in this covered alley adjacent to the market building for a long time watching the people come and go through the shadows and shards of brilliant light that penetrated the patchwork of awnings above. The iridescent glow of this scene was completely captivating to me.

Young women, these days, seem to do all their daily chores with their motorcycle helmets on. Since the wearing of helmets was made law in December 2007, women have, in some cases, forsaken the traditional conical hat. It simply isn't practical to carry a straw hat around on a motorbike and, since the wearing of hats is a necessary protection form the sun, they have taken to wearing their helmets as they go about their business,when out of doors.  Even fishermen's wives can be seen wearing their helmets on the beach when helping to bring in the boats and sort the fish to take to market. 

So, this scene shows those very same young women buying their fruit and vegetables while wearing their helmets.

On the left, a young man is cycling through the market in his designer shorts and tee-shirt. probably picking up some supplies for his grandmother on his way home for lunch.

In the centre, a women walking to collect lunch from her favourite food stall, bowl in hand. She was wearing the most exquisite silk suit that you only see on older women. Her conical hat is protected by a modern polythene cover but she has a traditional silk scarf knotted in each side to secure it in place.

The motorbike, the bicycle and the pedestrian each bearing the symbols of their age and generation. The boy is too young for a motorbike license. The young women must have good jobs to be able to afford smart modern scooters. The older woman wearing all the traditional accoutrements of her generation and probably those of her mother's as well.

The exhibition is on until September 14th at Vin Gallery