Hue looking at 'museum street'

Plans afoot to turn Le Loi into a street of museums and exhibition centers.

Leaders in Thua Thien Hue province have proposed the building of a street dedicated to museums and exhibition centers.

“The plan will serve the cultural needs of local people and visitors to the former imperial capital,” Mr. Duong Hong Lam, Chief Officer of the Thua Thien Hue Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, told VET. He added, however, that the Director of the Department, Mr. Phan Tien Dung, has only met with provincial leaders and proposed a plan to turn Le Loi Street into a "museum street".

Under the plan, the existing Museum of Culture will be rearranged and exhibit more Champa antiques collected in the province, and become the Hue Museum of Fine Arts.

The old colonial building that currently serves as the Hue Festival Center, which organizes the biennial cultural event and festivals at craft villages, will become a new museum for the sculptural works of the late artist Diem Phung Thi.

Dozens of newly-made sculptural works by international artists given to Hue will be displayed in a park nearby as part of the plan, including a great sculptural work depicting the patriot Phan Boi Chau, who pioneered a movement against French colonialism.

The Le Ba Dang Art Museum and the Lieu Quan Buddhist Center would also be part of the museum street.

The Department also proposed building a new museum depicting the history of local embroidery.

The proposed museum street is hoped to make Hue an even more culturally profound destination to visit.

There are many cultural and artistic works on Le Loi Street, such as French colonial buildings on the banks of the Huong (Perfume) River, and the Le Ba Dang Art Museum, with prominent works from the late artist Le Ba Dang, who lived and worked in France most of his life.

Hue is not only famous for its natural landscapes but also for its cultural heritage as Vietnam’s former imperial capital. Tourist arrivals reached 1.69 million in the first six months of this year, including 610,000 foreigners, an increase of 6.4 per cent year-on-year, according to the Thua Thien Hue Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

by Ngoc Lan / vneconomictimes.vn