French collector's love for Vietnamese ethnic costumes

On the evening of November 7, the opening ceremony of the Exhibition of Vietnamese ethnic costumes by collector Alain Dussarps was held at the Vietnam Cultural Center in Paris.

The event was attended by Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang, President of the France-Vietnam Friendship Association (AAFV) Nguyen Hai Nam, Honorary Senator Hélène Luc, and many overseas Vietnamese and French friends.

The exhibition is organized at the initiative of AAFV to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic relations and 10 years of France-Vietnam strategic partnership.

The costumes of the Dao and Kho Mu people, the brocade scarves of the Thai and Lo Lo people, the baskets of the Ede people, or the jewelry of the Mong people... all brought the viewers a feast for the eyes with new and interesting emotions.

This is a collection of about 70 costumes, hats, scarves, along with many accessories, jewelry and daily necessities of more than 30 ethnic groups in Vietnam, living mainly in the Northern mountainous region and the Central Highlands, as well as minority groups in the Mekong Delta and Red River Delta.

Sonia Ait Mansour, a Moroccan student studying in France who will compete in Miss World 2023 at the end of November in Dubai (United Arab Emirates - UAE), was excited to come to the exhibition.

Sonia Ait Mansour (a Moroccan student studying in France) will compete in Miss World 2023 in late November in Dubai wearing a Red Dao costume. (Source: VNA)

She shared: "I am very impressed by the richness of the costumes here. We can see not only traditional ethnic costumes but also cultural diversity, inspirations created from the interaction with neighboring cultures such as China, Laos, and Cambodia. The colors and layout are very impressive, expressing the psychology, emotions and style of each ethnic group.

But I especially like the Red Dao costume because it is very close to the costume of a minority tribe in my country Morocco, even the jewelry details have many similarities."

Two young men, Charles Darras and Julien Paralles, could not hide their surprise and impression of the costumes displayed at the exhibition.

Mr. Charles Darras said that this was the first time he had the opportunity to explore the costumes of the ethnic groups of Vietnam and was very surprised by the diversity of customs and culture of this East Asian country.

His friend, Julien Paralles, was particularly impressed by the vibrant and rich colors of the ethnic costumes of the North. Through the exhibition, he also noticed the diversity of both religion and cuisine, from the South to the North, which made him very interested and wanted to explore more.

Besides the goal of promoting the image of Vietnamese ethnic groups, the exhibition, open until November 12, also has another purpose, which is to call on French friends to pay attention and support charitable activities launched by AAFV to help people in difficult circumstances in Vietnam.

Mr. Alain Dussarps said that this rare ethnographic collection was collected by him during his time in Vietnam through about 60 humanitarian missions that he carried out with the Red Cross and charity organizations in remote rural areas of Vietnam.

It was the trust, affection and gifts of those he helped that helped him gradually gather all these objects, creating a valuable collection.

Conversely, by organizing exhibitions of Vietnamese national costumes in French cities, he raised funds to carry out humanitarian projects.

To date, he has implemented 99 projects in provinces and cities in Vietnam with a total amount of more than 562,000 Euros. The projects focus mainly on education, health care, clean water and household economic development in mountainous provinces, remote areas, and ethnic minority areas.

He shared: "The things we do are small, but they have great meaning for local people. This year, we have helped people in Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Phu Yen, Binh Dinh, Vinh Long and Soc Trang provinces.

Each project costs about 3,000-4,000 Euros depending on the proposal of the local Red Cross, because they understand the needs of the people better. We try our best to introduce and help the Vietnamese people."

Mr. Nguyen Hai Nam, Chairman of AAFV, added: "Each artifact and costume in the collection is a story associated with the humanitarian activities that Mr. Alain Dussarps has carried out over the past 30 years.

Therefore, the exhibition is not only to promote the culture of ethnic groups but also to call on French friends to support ethnic minorities living in remote areas, helping them raise livestock and develop their family economy. In addition, AAFV also wants to take this opportunity to call for support and solidarity with Vietnamese Agent Orange victims."

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the exhibition, Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang highly appreciated this meaningful event of AAFV in general and of Mr. Alain Dussarps in particular.

The Ambassador said that the exhibition is not only to introduce ethnic costumes in different regions, but also to demonstrate Mr. Alain Dussarps' attachment and love for the Vietnamese people, as well as his passion for humanitarian projects, to help ethnic people in remote mountainous areas improve their lives.

Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang emphasized: "Mr. Alain Dussarps' contributions cannot be summarized in a few words, a few numbers, or in a few minutes, but it represents a long story, a long-standing friendship and a lasting solidarity.

All of that will remain in our minds and hearts and we are grateful to him for what he has done, as well as thank AAFV for always accompanying and supporting Vietnam throughout the past time."

The exhibition, which runs until November 12, not only promotes images of the Vietnamese people and calls for support from international friends, but also shows the precious affection of French friends, especially collector Alain Dussarps, for Vietnam, contributing to further fostering the friendship between the two nations.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tinh-yeu-cua-nha-suu-tap-phap-danh-cho-trang-phuc-cac-dan-toc-viet-nam-249213.html