TBWA gets behind Saigon/CreativeMornings

TBWA\Vietnam is supporting Saigon/CreativeMornings, a non-profit enterprise, to help build the creative community in Vietnam. Saigon/CreativeMornings is a monthly series that focuses on fresh ideas, innovation and creativity. Held at TBWA\Vietnam’s head quarters in Ho Chi Minh City, the event brings in key speakers on a range of topics that inspire and support creativity.

The first Saigon/CreativeMornings speaker was writer, actor, producer, director, Dustin Nguyen (left). Coming off of the success of Để Mai Tính, Vietnam’s biggest film of 2010, Dustin tackled the difficult question of trying to find the balance between art and commerce – something very relevant to those in the creative industries.

R. Streitmatter-Tran, an artist who attended the first Saigon/CreativeMornings event, praised Dustin Nguyen on tackling the subject in a very forthright manner: “Dustin was a fantastic start – honest, unpretentious, and informative. An ironic but good mix; his talk avoided self-promotion in a space where survival depends on promotion.”

Saigon/CreativeMorning’s upcoming event is on Friday February 18. The guest speaker is Adrian Jones, developer of WinMail, a leading email product in the early 1990s. Today, Jones is the curator of the Witness Collection – the largest private collection of Vietnamese art in the world. His role gives him a unique perspective on the value of creativity and its importance to society.

“I’ve come to realise that, often unwittingly, we regularly take on a set of social responsibilities when collecting unique and original art – sometimes including responsibilities to a much larger community. Most artists create their works to be seen, so firstly we have at least some duty to the artist to share their works with other viewers, whether friends and family or wider afield.”

Saigon/CreativeMornings next event on February 18 is open to the public on a first come, first serve basis. You can get more information and sign up for a ticket through the Saigon/Creative Mornings web site.