Fashion design
Vietnamese fashion design did not develop significantly until the late 1990s, taking off initially in the southern capital Hồ Chí Minh City. Since the launch of the annual Việt Nam Fashion Week in Summer 1999 this important three-day show has helped launch the careers of numerous international prize-winning designers, including Trương Thanh Long, Trương Anh Vũ, Huyền Mi, Hoàng Thị Anh Nghi and Nguyễn Hà Nhật Huy.
Although the Hà Nội fashion scene remains somewhat quieter than that of Hồ Chí Minh City, the capital is now catching up rapidly with new young talents such as Hoàng Ngân, Minh Hạnh and Nguyễn Ngọc Sơn.
The current trend in Vietnamese fashion is harmoniously to draw on Asian and western styles with a view to creating simple designs in natural colours using quality Vietnamese materials such as silk, cotton, linen and taffeta.
Meanwhile, the elegant
aó dài remains the outfit of choice for the business sector, continuing to develop subtlely year by year according to the whims of fashion. Western designers such as Armani, Karan, Klein and Lauren have all drawn ideas from this classic Vietnamese creation, transforming them into astronomically-priced
haute couture.
In terms of infrastructural development, the
Fashion Design Institute (Fadin) was set up in 1999 in Hồ Chí Minh City to identify and nurture talented designers, bringing them together with apparel firms with a view to promoting the production of original Vietnamese garments of high quality. Each year it organises the Việt Nam Fashion Week in collaboration with the
Việt Nam National Textile and Garment Corporation (Vinatex) and
Mốt (Fashion) Magazine. Two other important centres -
ZEN Plaza in Hồ Chí Minh City and the
Hà Nội Designers Centre in the capital - have since been established to provide a competitive environment for domestic designers, familiarise the public with designer brand names and help designers to promote their products to their customers.
At the present time Việt Nam's two main training centres for fashion designers are
Hà Nội University of Industrial Fine Art in the north and
Đồng Nai College of Decorative Arts in the south. However, those working within the fashion sector acknowledge that while many young Vietnamese design graduates are very talented and creative, existing fashion design programmes equip students with only a rudimentary knowledge of fashion design, textiles and manufacturing.
To this end international training courses and workshops are increasingly organised by international organisations such as the
British Council and the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Việt Nam with a view to giving local designers the chance to exchange experiences with overseas design professionals, develop their professional skills and showcase their work. The
UNESCO Centre for Fine Art is also active in the establishment of short training courses and workshops in professional fashion design.
