Ù Ơ | SUO Virtual Showcase

27 February 2022 — 6 March 2022

Ù Ơ | SUO is a digital residency project, supported by the British Council, which brings together ten early career Vietnamese and Welsh women / non-binary poets and artists to exchange ideas and collaborate on new work that experiments with translations between cultures, languages and art forms. The title Ù Ơ | SUO plays with the ‘first’ sounds: of lullabies and soothing sounds parents make when comforting babies and small children, referring to origins of language. Rhyming with ‘thơ’ (poetry), the title aims to refresh our understanding of poetry and acquisition of language. And, the title of the Welsh traditional lullaby Suo Gân auspiciously chimes with the Vietnamese name originally chosen for the project.

The co-curators Nhã Thuyên and Alexandra Büchler facilitated the encounters and prepared the work for showcasing together with the production team Nici Beech and Quang Kiếm Nguyễn.

The project ran from November 2021 until late February 2022 and the public showcase launches on 27th February. You can access the week-long programme on the Notion platform. UO / SUO Facebook page and You Tube.

Apart from the British Council, the project partners AJAR and LAF, would like to thank the Arts Council of Wales, the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies and University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

Literature Across Frontiers has initiated and coordinated international literary and artistic cooperation projects for two decades, with many collaborative exchange residencies across Europe and beyond. We are experienced in cross-cultural work and have worked with partners in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau. This is our first collaboration with a partner in Vietnam.