Arts and Society

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Student Spotlight: Hang Nguyen

What inspired you to start the project?
One thing that puzzled me since I first came to Berlin was the presence of such a large Vietnamese community here. I was very curious to find out what the reason behind it was. Who are these people and why are they living here? From there, I spoke with relatives and people I know who are living here in Germany and learned about the Vietnamese community through them. 

What were some of the obstacles you encountered while working on the project and how did you overcome them?
The main obstacles I encountered was finding the people to interview for the project. I had some contacts who were relatives or parents of my friends, but many were quite hesitant to talk about their past. After a few initial interviews, I changed my questions and the way in which I approached the interviewees. I decided that it was better to ask more open ended questions where they could tell me parts they choose instead of pressing on specific topics. This gave me a better result. Along with this, it was important to build trust and a friendly relationship with them since these topics were quite personal.

How has the project since developed and evolved?
Over the summer, I continued researching the topic and also worked at an independent Vietnamese art organization called Heritage Space. Heritage Space is partnering with Das Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) this year to do a transnational art project about contract workers in the GDR. Throughout the summer, I conducted many interviews alongside Heritage Space. At the moment, I am in the process of developing my thesis as a continuation of this project and potentially a longer film as a creative component. 

How does the project connect art with research and civic engagement?
For me, art touches, connects and resonates with people on a different level than an academic paper would. There is something very intuitive about art; when art is done alongside with research, I think it really contextualizes the work on a different level. In my process of researching, I met with many different organizations, researchers and people that were living in Berlin. Thus, I was really able to situate my research topic in the real everyday life of people which to me is a part of civic engagement. Art for me is an essential part of a community as well, it provides a form of third space that allows people to interact, to relate with one another. 

What does civic engagement mean to you?
For me civic engagement is proactively addressing an issue in the community that I live in, no matter how big or small. The starting point can come from a personal place or just geographically where I am situated. In its essence, I think it has a lot to do with just acknowledging your position in a community and society. I recognize that a lot of my privileges and opportunities were provided to me by the community I live in and, in turn, I also want to take part in somehow sustaining this environment of opportunities for everyone. 

What impact did courses at BCB have on your project?
The course Research-Creation that I took with Dr. Marion Detjen was super impactful for me to understand how Germany and Berlin in particular became what it is today. It is very important for me to understand the history of the place I am living in and how its past affects the present and future. In addition, since the course is research-based creation, it allows me to approach research in a completely different way while still providing me with the skills to do historical research. The final event of the course which included the screening of a documentary, “Bruderland ist Abgebrannt” by Angelika Nguyen, my film project and a talk with filmmaker Angelika Nguyen, activist David Macou and historian Katharina Warda was a great expansion for further discussion and research of my project topic. I think the ability to freely think and create was possible thanks to this course and Marion.