The event took place earlier this week at the Ho Guom Opera House in Hanoi to kick off Ao Dai Week (March 1-8), during which all women are encouraged to wear ao dai to celebrate International Women’s Day (March 8).
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| The event took place earlier this week at the Ho Guom Opera House in Hanoi to kick off Ao Dai Week (March 1-8). Photo: VOV |
The show also features nearly 200 artists, models, and dancers, according to Hanoitimes.
The highlight of the catwalk is Trinh Hoai Nam’s collection entitled Heritage of Five Countries, presented by Indira Gumarova, wife of the Czech Ambassador, who walked in ao dai inspired by Slavic ceramic motifs. She said that she had a lot of fun in this dress because there is no outfit like Ao Dai in the Czech Republic.
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| Five wives of foreign ambassadors attend the event donning the traditional Vietnamese Ao Dai. Photo: VOV |
“I am a person who loves traditional values, especially fashion products. I think fashion is always connected to people’s lives, and costumes represent changes in a country’s culture. For me, ao dai is an intersection of traditional beauty and modern elements. Ao dai is not as complicated as the Japanese kimono, nor as modern as the American power suit, but it is a combination, a harmony. I think the future of fashion is ao dai, the call of tradition in modern times,” she said.
She said the Ao Dai she wore was a blend of Vietnamese and Czech cultural traits.
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| The Vietnam Ao Dai Week is first held back in 2019 by the Vietnam Women’s Union in co-ordination with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Photo: VOV |
“Details in the design are taken from blue ceramics, which were imported to the Czech Republic in the 15th century and quickly became an indispensable part of every Czech family. Looking at these details, I feel the familiarity of my homeland and at the same time show the Vietnamese public the similarities between Czech and Vietnamese culture,” she said.
The wife of the Ambassador of Armenia, Valia Kazhoyan, presented ao dai inspired by the Khachkar scriptures. The spouse of the Moroccan ambassador, Ouafae Sehhar, wore an ao dai called Chefchaouen – The Blue City. Meanwhile, the wife of Indonesian Ambassador Kristien Abdi donned The Moon Orchid of Reog and the wife of US Ambassador Suzuko Knapper was gowned in Tribal Sovereignty.
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| The wives of the foreign ambassadors leave a positive impression on audiences while modeling Ao Dai at the event. Photo: VOV |
For Kristien Abdi, Ao Dai has always been one of her favorite outfits, and this time it is even more special because this dress has the pattern of traditional Indonesian batik.
“I think I’m not only wearing a fashion product but also a product of the diplomatic cultures of the two countries. I feel very happy that I can promote the Ao Dai culture to the Indonesian public and at the same time promote the Indonesian culture to the Vietnamese people,” she said.
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| The event features the latest Ao Dai collections from over 50 fashion designers. Photo: VOV |
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| Ao Dai collections draw inspiration from numerous famous heritage sites, Vietnamese landscapes, national flags, and diplomatic relations between Vietnam and foreign countries. Photo: VOV |
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