The Zen garden embodies the essence of nature, situated within a coniferous forest, where it bathes in the morning sunlight and is immersed in the cool breeze of the nearby beach. Visitors move freely within its open space, unbound by fixed positions or traditional frames of reference.
Movement transcends notions of interior and exterior, high and low. Heaven and earth, plants, flowers, and humans merge into one harmonious whole, where every step resonates with the breath of the pure land.

Hồ Viết Vinh 29.12.2024 (Commemorating the announcement of the resolution establishing Huế as a centrally governed city)

Legend, memory, and romance breathe life into the Ancient Capital of Huế.
Huế stands as one of the rare ancient capitals in urban history, crafted with emotion; it embodies unique human values and serves as a perfect bridge between humanity and the cosmos. As one wanders through its Imperial City, a poetic soul seems to linger, inviting reflection. Time flows slowly here, awakening seeds of love that draw us back to childhood memories. Every street corner, every road, and every structure is steeped in nostalgia and gently dusted by time. Each architectural masterpiece tells its own historical tale, weaving the legend of this Sacred Land. The poetic city of Huế manifests not only in its physical form but also in the mythical tales surrounding its river’s origins. Whether these stories bring joy or sorrow, they remain an integral part of us. The endless inspiration for love that creates this poetic city originates from the Perfume River and Ngự Bình Mountain. Cao Bá Quát once likened the Perfume River to: “A long river standing like a sword in the blue sky.”

Huế: A land of Legends, with its tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the Chăm community. From the Phú Diên Tower and Hòn Chén Temple to the Thành Lồi Citadel, these are remnants of the Champa Kingdom in Huế. The influence of Chăm aesthetics in music, architecture, sculpture, and cuisine is distinctly evident in Huế’s cultural treasures.

Huế: A land of Memory, continuing the legacy of the Tây Sơn and Nguyễn dynasties, both glorious and tragic. With nine Lords and thirteen Nguyễn emperors, it formed the land of Thuận Hoá over 720 years, contributing eight cultural heritages to the world.

Huế: A land of Romantic Wisdom. The great intellectuals of Vietnam in modern history were directly or indirectly influenced by the magnificent and splendid culture of Thuận Hoá-Phú Xuân.

Today, Huế has reclaimed its position as a unique cultural center of Vietnam and Asia, embodying the nation’s spirit of integration to enrich its treasury of wisdom and romance for enduring values. The journey is carried by the love for the homeland and the wisdom of the era, crafting a new visage worthy of history and the times. A message both affirming and reminding us not to forget, as playwright Đào Tấn expressed: “Together we drink the waters of the Perfume River, yet none comprehend its fragrant essence.”

“Cộng ẩm hương giang thuỷ
Vô nhân thức thuỷ hương.”

Playwright đào tấn

The goal is to enhance connectivity between Can Gio and neighboring provinces, particularly Vung Tau. As Ho Chi Minh City continues to expand, the demand for infrastructure grows, posing potential risks to Can Gio’s ecological integrity. Special attention is given to strengthening links with the nearby beach resort of Vung Tau, initially through a speedboat network and eventually with the proposed construction of an undersea tunnel.
While the jury found the tunnel proposal highly debatable, they acknowledged that the previously approved masterplan lacked adequate provisions for improving these connections. Team 4 prioritized these links, making them a central focus of their proposal.

Another key aspect of the development proposed by the team is the diversification of tourism activities. These could range from walking or boating excursions through the mangroves to farm visits, beach activities, and trips to nearby provinces made more accessible through the improved transportation links.
The team also presented a project to reclaim land and create two artificial islands off the coast at the eastern and western ends. These islands are envisioned as hubs for diverse tourism activities, offering unique experiences to visitors.

Achieving these objectives will require significant improvements to infrastructure. A high-speed transportation system must be implemented in a way that respects the environment and minimizes pollution, bringing Can Gio closer to nearby development areas.
Freshwater supply is critical for both residents and tourists. A sustainable water collection and recycling system should be established to optimize this valuable resource while preventing water pollution.
The construction of eco-houses will help balance the infrastructural development, ensuring harmony with the natural surroundings. Additionally, all other modes of transportation within the area will be designed to be environmentally friendly.

The project seeks to enhance the quality of life for the residents of Can Gio. This will be accomplished by preserving and upgrading traditional activities such as farming and those along the beach.
Locals will be encouraged to participate in service, trade, and production activities to meet the demands of tourism while maintaining their cultural heritage. Traditional practices will be promoted, enabling those living in the forest, on the beach, or along the river to share their unique ways of life.
Additionally, numerous public spaces and recreational activities will be developed, fostering leisure and entertainment opportunities for both residents and visitors.

The southern area of Can Gio along the beach will be developed with a focus on preserving the connections between the forest and the sea. Six key axes will serve as the foundation for these links: an agricultural production axis, a commercial axis, a festival axis, a handicraft village axis, a traditional market axis, and a public space axis.
This approach ensures that development respects the natural and cultural heritage of the region while creating vibrant and functional spaces for both residents and visitors.

The ultimate aim of this proposal is to evoke and enrich people’s senses and emotions, creating an “emotional city”. Both visitors and locals will be immersed in a symphony of sensory experiences:
They will listen to the soothing sounds of the forest and the rhythmic waves of the beach. They will marvel at breathtaking views of the sea and lush forests, swim in the waves, and feel the textures of the forest’s natural wonders.
The air will carry the refreshing scent of the sea, mingling with the intricate fragrances of the mangrove. They will savor the local flavors, from seafood harvested from the river and sea to traditional delicacies.
Beyond these sensory delights, their emotions will be further deepened by the rich history, vibrant culture, and timeless traditions of Can Gio, making every moment a journey of discovery and connection.

Team 4

• Ho Viet Vinh – Leader Architect, Urban Planner
• Pham Phu Cuong – Architect
• Nguyen Hong Minh – Architect
• Hoang Anh Tu – Architect, Urban Planner
• Pham Anh Tuan – Architect, Urban Planner
• Nguyen Anh Tuan – Architect, Landscape Architect

Team 4, comprised entirely of Vietnamese professionals and led by Architect Ho Viet Vinh, brought a profound vision for the future of Can Gio. The team outlined a series of key objectives, including the preservation of the mangrove ecosystem—both its core and transitional areas—the optimization and development of local production activities, and the protection of water resources from pollution originating from the Saigon-Dong Nai River and the sea.
For their insightful and forward-thinking approach, Team 4 awarded a special mention from the Workshops of Cergy-Pontoise.

Picture architecture in Vietnam and you might imagine ancient temples buried down countryside lanes or faded colonial buildings lining the city streets. But spurred by unprecedented economic growth, this Southeast Asian country of almost 100 million is revamping its traditional image – and architecture is part of the overhaul. After decades spent trying to keep Vietnam’s unrelenting jungles out of the cities, visionary architects now harness the wilderness to enhance their urban creations. And the countryside is no longer designated for relics of the past – but also innovations for the future. From contemporary art hubs hiding in the hills to city tower blocks blooming with foliage, here is the architecture that is making its mark on Vietnam.

Lebadang Memory Space, by Architect Ho Viet Vinh

Nestled in the countryside together with Hue’s centuries-old royal tombs, Lebadang Memory Space is a lively architectural update to the city’s monarchical heritage. This contemporary art museum is dedicated to late local artist Le Ba Dang, who sketched the drawing that the blueprints are based on. Local architect Ho Viet Vinh designed the structure, completed in April 2019, with a central skylight that allows beams of light to track through the exhibition hall throughout the day.

Sky House by MIA Design Studio

Vegetation bulges from the balconies and rooftops of Sky House, a home in Ho Chi Minh City completed in December 2019. The plot was spacious enough to accommodate a large townhouse, but instead of creating unrequired rooms, MIA Design Studio designated half the house to light, wind, water and trees. The result is a generous sky well that feeds light to the habitable rooms and chambers with no practical purpose but to house plants, trees, and indoor ponds.

Chicland, by Vo Trong Nghia

Award-winning architect Vo Trong Nghia is celebrated for his use of natural materials and foliage, such as bamboo and tropical plants. The 21-floor Chicland Hotel, completed in June 2019 in the modern seaside city of Danang, features both. The on-site café has earthy bamboo interiors while the balconies overflow with greenery. Similarly biophilic, Vo Trong Nghia’s Silver Cloud, slated for completion later this year, is a leafy long-stay hotel that blends with the lakes and mountains of Cuc Phuong National Park, 100km south of Hanoi.

Brick Cave, by Doan Thanh Ha

In Vietnam, bricks have been used for at least a millennium. Doan Thanh Ha, who recently won the Turgut Cansever International Award, constructed the Brick Cave in the suburbs of Hanoi with an additional exterior wall to form a narrow atrium around the house. This perforated exterior casing with large windows invites natural light into the family home while keeping it cool during Hanoi’s scorching summers. The rooftop features a vegetable garden.

Central Park, by LAVA and ASPECT Studio

LAVA and ASPECT Studio won the commission to revamp Ho Chi Minh City’s September 23 Park, one of the city centre’s largest green spaces. As well as outdoor art galleries, performance pavilions and sport zones, LAVA and ASPECT Studio are deploying smart city artificial trees. Water purification trees collect and recycle rainwater, ventilation trees provide fresh air and solar trees generate power. Construction is scheduled to begin later in 2020.

VAC Library, by Farming Architects

While large-scale ventures are making a bold impact, smaller innovations are surfacing more quietly. In Hanoi, VAC Library by Farming Architects (Pictured above) is both climbing frame and reading room set within a three-dimensional grid fashioned from wooden beams. Other small projects of great promise include the Chieng Yen Community House in Son La Province by 1+1>2 Architects, which has a semi-cylindrical thatch roof supported by a bamboo frame. In Danang, architecture studio Tropical Space used brick to construct Cuckoo House, a family home perched above a café.

Empire City, by Ole Scheeren

As Vietnam’s commercial capital, Ho Chi Minh City is entertaining many of the country’s most ambitious projects. With Empire City, Ole Scheeren explores how ‘nature can become an iconic element of architecture’ with a complex of three towers overlooking the Saigon River. At the building’s base, layered platforms evoke the swirling rice terraces of northern Vietnam. Over halfway up Empire Tower 88, the tallest of the three skyscrapers at 333 metres, sits the Sky Forest with verdant water gardens that echo the country’s jungles. Construction is expected to start in early 2021.

See the original article at the link.

Garden of Eden

The Garden of Eden is an embodiment of the invisible woven into the fabric of existence. Its design reflects a poetic dialogue where nature’s abstraction meets architectural form. The undulating lines and textured surfaces echo the silent whispers of the earth, creating a harmonious interplay between light and shadow. This spatial composition blurs the boundaries of the tangible, inviting contemplation of the unseen. Through the use of natural materials and organic forms, the garden becomes a sanctuary of tranquility, mirroring the serene and introspective essence of the divine landscape.

Inviting a contemplation of the divine within the mundane, a glimpse into the aura of life itself, forever capturing the transient light and darkness that dance within the soul’s depths.
Ho Viet Vinh

Kiến trúc sư Hồ Viết Vinh (Đêm giao thừa đón Xuân Ất Tỵ 2025 tại Cố đô Huế)
Trong bối cảnh hiện nay khi thế giới đang đối mặt với những thách thức lớn về môi trường, biến đổi khí hậu và sự phát triển bền vững, giá trị phổ quát của kiến trúc chính là nâng cao phẩm giá của con người trong mối tương quan với thiên nhiên. Phẩm giá này được tạo dựng dựa trên các nền tảng sau:

1. Kiến trúc là cầu nối giữa con người và thiên nhiên: Kiến trúc không chỉ là việc tạo ra những công trình để che chở con người mà còn là cách để con người kết nối với thiên nhiên một cách hài hòa. Thiết kế kiến trúc tốt phải tôn trọng và phản ánh mối quan hệ tự nhiên giữa con người và môi trường, thay vì tách biệt hoặc đối đầu với thiên nhiên.
2. Nâng cao phẩm giá con người: Kiến trúc có khả năng nâng cao chất lượng cuộc sống và phẩm giá con người thông qua việc tạo ra những không gian đẹp, tiện nghi và ý nghĩa. Một công trình kiến trúc tốt không chỉ đáp ứng nhu cầu vật chất mà còn nuôi dưỡng tinh thần, cảm xúc và nhận thức của con người.
3. Thiên nhiên là nguồn cảm hứng vô tận: Thiên nhiên không chỉ là yếu tố cần được bảo vệ mà còn là nguồn cảm hứng vô tận cho kiến trúc. Các nguyên tắc tự nhiên như sự cân bằng, đa dạng và thích ứng có thể được áp dụng vào thiết kế. Kiến trúc tương lai cần học hỏi từ thiên nhiên để tạo ra các giải pháp bền vững và hiệu quả.
4. Kiến trúc bền vững là trách nhiệm đạo đức: Trong bối cảnh biến đổi khí hậu và suy thoái môi trường, kiến trúc có trách nhiệm đạo đức trong việc bảo vệ thiên nhiên và giảm thiểu tác động tiêu cực. Kiến trúc bền vững không chỉ là xu hướng mà còn là sự cần thiết để đảm bảo tương lai cho các thế hệ sau.
5. Kiến trúc tương lai chính là tạo dựng sự hài hòa giữa con người, thiên nhiên và công nghệ: Kiến trúc tương lai cần kết hợp hài hòa giữa nhu cầu của con người, sự tôn trọng thiên nhiên và ứng dụng công nghệ tiên tiến. Công nghệ không nên là yếu tố thống trị mà là công cụ để hỗ trợ con người sống hòa hợp với thiên nhiên.

Kiến trúc tương lai cần đặt con người và thiên nhiên vào trung tâm, từ đó tạo ra những không gian không chỉ đẹp và tiện nghi mà còn bền vững, nhân văn và giàu ý nghĩa. Đây không chỉ là mục tiêu của kiến trúc mà còn là trách nhiệm của toàn xã hội trong việc xây dựng một tương lai tốt đẹp hơn.