NARRATING VIETNAMESE RESIDENTIAL CULTURE THROUGH BRICKS: TROPICAL SPACE

The third lecture in the SNU-MOKCHON Lectures, which aimed at promoting exchange between regional and international architecture, was held on the 18th of October at Seoul National University Museum of Art. After papers from Rafael Moneo (Spain) and Liu Jiakun (China), this year’s main presenter was Tropical Space from Vietnam. Following their graduation from University of Architecture Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyễn Hải Long and Trần Thị Ngụ Ngôn established Tropical Space in 2011 and have since engaged in architectural activities based on their knowledge of Vietnamese culture and its climate. Tropical Space materialises a sedimented Vietnamese residential language in a more flexible, contemporary vernacular by using bricks. Stepping beyond the living space, what do they envisage for their future projects?

Passing through a tumultuous transitionary period during its modern era, it is now easy to find (Vietnamese Tube House) with narrow width in Vietnam. These long and narrow urban housings are compact heritage sites that display Vietnamese history, embodying the combined influences of Vietnam’s feudal dynasty era, the, which brought about a revolutionary and historic turning point towards liberation in 1986, a massive transformation took place in the design and realisation of residential and urban environments. The distribution of land use rights through purchase and collateral revitalised the land estate market, and a development model based on the few export-focused cities became firmly established by allowing direct foreign investment. With the exponential influx of capital and human resources into the city, Vietnam now faces social problems such as unplanned mass housing developments and progressive deruralisation, problems confronted by South Korea during its miraculous period of economic growth in the 1980s and 1990s.