The History Museum, located on Dien Bien Phu Street, is an important cultural landmark. Photo: Minh Anh

First, let's talk about the Hue City History Museum. As a cultural center like Hue, the History Museum is an important cultural landmark that attracts much attention. Leaving aside the "past" – given the limited conditions at the time, the History Museum was temporarily housed at the Imperial Academy before finally being moved to its new location on Dien Bien Phu Street. Before we could even celebrate the museum finally having a spacious, elevated location on a street named after a historic national victory, and close to the Nam Giao Altar historical site, I recently heard the news that the museum will have to move again!

That day, Mr. Phan Tan Hoi, son of Lawyer Phan Anh – one of the two founders of the Frontline Youth School in 1945 – invited some friends to attend the 80th anniversary celebration of this special school. I eagerly arrived early, hoping that the first-ever celebration at the new location of the Historical Museum would feature exhibits in a new space – including valuable artifacts donated to the Museum many years ago by former students of the Frontline Youth School. Unfortunately, the celebration was modest, held around a row of tables, as the Museum was considered not yet operational and "apparently" about to move to a new location.

Life is constantly moving and changing, especially organizational structures which have undergone many restructuring in recent times. However, cultural institutions such as museums, libraries, and theaters, especially in major cities both domestically and internationally , mostly remain in their original locations and are not affected by changes in geographical boundaries, personnel, terms of office, or even the political system. Examples include the Hanoi Opera House, the National Library, and the Historical Museum in Hanoi; the Louvre Museum in France – where a recent theft caused a global uproar – was established in 1793, meaning it has remained in its original location for 232 years. The National Library on Truong Thi Street in Hanoi was established in 1917 and has also remained in its original location for 108 years…

I mentioned the National Library of Hanoi because I heard that the Hue City Library might also have to relocate. Everyone knows that moving a library with a huge collection of books and periodicals accumulated over decades and meticulously organized is not as simple as moving an administrative office… Old books and documents are easily damaged or displaced… Not to mention whether the new location will make it more convenient for readers to access…

The headquarters of the Union of Literature and Arts Associations of Hue City, which moved from 26 Le Loi Street to 1 Phan Boi Chau Street several years ago, is also scheduled to relocate. Here, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of the first arts and literature organization in the country – September 18, 1945 – September 18, 2025 – the Hue Literature and Arts Memorial Room was inaugurated. This space respectfully preserves memories, artifacts, and valuable documents about the rich, arduous, yet glorious historical journey of Hue's artists and writers. Here, you can find images of Hue's arts and literature activities before the August 1945 Revolution, along with portraits of prominent intellectuals who made significant contributions to the culture and arts of the nation and the ancient capital...

Some valuable works and artifacts of artists and writers are on display, including a piano donated by Thua Thien Hue Radio Station to the Literature and Arts Association in its early days, which was used by great musicians such as Tran Hoan, Van Cao, and Trinh Cong Son in their artistic activities; a shirt belonging to Trinh Cong Son, along with a painting by artist Nguyen Dai Giang depicting the late musician, respectfully donated by the Gac Trinh group; manuscripts and items associated with the creative lives of writers and poets: three generations of the family of poet Nguyen Khoa Diem, writer To Nhuan Vy, poet Tran Vang Sao, writer Hong Nhu…

The Hue City Literary and Artistic Memorial Room is not as large as the City History Museum and Library, but it still possesses values ​​unique to cultural centers. Recently, in early October 2025, when a film crew from the Central Scientific Documentary Film Studio came to Hue to film a documentary about the renowned female historian Dam Phuong, they asked me to speak about her contributions to the development of early Vietnamese literature through several novels. I suggested "borrowing" the Hue City Literary and Artistic Memorial Room as the setting for the interview. The film crew members were very enthusiastic and captured many valuable documents there through their cameras.

The collection of artifacts in the Hue City Literary and Artistic Memorial Room will grow even larger, as many people were unable to send items during the opening ceremony – including many well-known artists and writers. Therefore, the managing agency is continuing to call on artists, writers, and the public to contribute further to enrich the Memorial Room. When that happens, the Memorial Room will likely need to expand its exhibition space, and if equipped with digital audio-visual equipment, it will become a more attractive destination for students and researchers. What will be the fate of the newly opened Memorial Room when the headquarters of the Union of Literary and Artistic Associations moves to its new location?

A cultural center like Hue, in its process of construction and development, has many important matters to consider. The "cultural institutions" I mentioned above represent only a narrow perspective, with the hope that relevant authorities, when deciding to change the addresses of these facilities, will consider all aspects comprehensively and carefully. If a change of address is necessary, it must create conditions for these cultural institutions to operate better and serve the public more effectively…

Nguyen Khac Phe

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/co-an-cu-moi-lac-nghiep-159931.html