HÀ NỘI — Cao Thanh Lan and Gregor Siedl have unveiled a new piece titled Âm Âm – Drone & Drone, an art installation inspired by the Vietnamese kite flute, at Complex 01 in Hà Nội. 

An installation involving 16 Vietnamese kite flutes, the piece was conceived and developed by the two artists. The work centres around the word 'drone' – meaning both a pilotless aircraft and at the same time the sound of ancient healing and sustaining music.

Early types of drones were used by the American army during the war in Việt Nam, primarily for military observation, electronic warfare, decoy missions and in psychological warfare. 

On the other hand, the kite flutes used in this installation come from a longstanding and still vibrant tradition in Việt Nam that symbolises people’s hope for peace and prosperity.

The exhibition invites contemplation on the dual nature of humanity – the potential to create beauty, goodness and transcendence, while also possessing the power to destroy the world.

With support from Complex 01, Nghề Nghệ and the Austrian Embassy in Việt Nam, the exhibition is on view at Complex 01, located on the third floor at 167 Tây Sơn Street, Hà Nội. A motorbike journey, complete with kite flutes moving through the streets of the capital, will also take place on the morning of January 25.

Lan, from Việt Nam, and Siedl, from Austria, have been part of a Vienna-based group of artists in the field of sound art, transdisciplinary art and contemporary music since 2013. 

The group is one of five from Austria that received an award from the New Austrian Sound of Music 2018-2020 in the category Contemporary Music.

With their recent sound artworks and transdisciplinary projects, many of which incorporate site-specific elements and audience participation, they explore the relationship and balance between visual and auditory elements, nature and artificiality, human and machine, intentionality versus spontaneity, and explore how contextualisation changes our perception of things.

Sound, human body movements, artificial intelligence, light, space and shadow are among the media used to convey in a poetic and playful way their reflections on art and humanity.

The group's work has been featured at numerous art institutions, festivals and cultural venues. They have toured around the world, including in Japan, Brazil, Iran, Argentina, Finland, Australia, Indonesia and Việt Nam. — VNS