The exhibition “THE ARt of WATER” offers a fresh approach to traditional water puppetry, combining ancient cultural values ​​with modern technology, aiming to bring this heritage closer to the public, especially young people, while preserving and conveying traditional beauty in a vibrant way.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Hoa, Director of the Hanoi Creative Activities Coordination Center, delivered the opening remarks.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Hoa, Director of the Hanoi Creative Activities Coordination Center, emphasized that the Ngoc Thuy Dinh project is a vivid testament to the creativity and social responsibility of young people, as they combine passion, knowledge, and skills to bring traditional water puppetry closer to the public.

Furthermore, the application of technology does not alter the essence of the heritage, but rather expands the creative space, helping water puppetry art to reach younger audiences more easily, generating interest and sparking concern for traditional cultural values.

The public is guided on how to interact with the water puppet model using QR codes.

Driven by a passion for research, the project team spent months gathering materials, interviewing artisans, and directly observing performance processes on the water stage. Based on this, the team developed a digitized approach that respects traditional values ​​while being suitable for modern audiences.

With the support of the Thang Long Puppet Theatre as a content consultant, the student group proactively digitized all 17 water puppet plays. From researching materials and developing scripts for filming, shooting on the water stage, to post-production and data integration on an AR platform, each step was carried out with a spirit of proactive research and continuous experimentation to ensure the quality of images, movements, and composition.

Visitors observe a model of water puppetry in the traditional exhibition area.
The exhibition “THE ART of WATER” offers new and engaging experiences for the public.

According to Ms. Luu Phuong Ha, Deputy Head of the Project Organizing Committee, the biggest challenge lies in testing on various AR data creation platforms.

"We have to constantly compare and test image stability, responsiveness during interaction, and experiment across various AR data creation platforms to select the most suitable option, allowing viewers to easily interact with each AR video in each game," Ms. Ha said.

Thanks to this, AR technology became a highlight of the exhibition. With just a smartphone and a QR code scan, viewers could follow each moving scene right in the real world. Familiar scenes such as dragon dances, fishing, rowing boats, or the mischievous Teu character appeared vividly, giving the feeling of standing in front of a miniature water stage.

Besides the technological space, the exhibition also displays a system of documents and images introducing the development process of Vietnamese water puppetry. Many models and characteristic puppets provided by the Thang Long Puppet Theatre are introduced, allowing viewers to access traditional puppets right in the museum space, without the need for a water stage.  

Text and photos: MAI ANH

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/van-hoa/doi-song/kham-pha-mua-roi-nuoc-qua-lang-kinh-ar-tai-trien-lam-the-art-of-water-1016648