Post-Grad Mixer: No Place Like Home, at the Museum of the Home

Hosted in the Museum of the Home, its location is a poignant marker of the Vietnamese diaporas settlement and influence on Kingsland Road, Hackney, in the late 20^th century. After fleeing the communist regime after the fall of Saigon in 1975, settlement in Britain was difficult for many Vietnamese immigrants. The British government was typically hostile to new arrivals from Southeast Asia, creating difficult conditions to settle in one area and consequently, a sense of isolation.

No Place Like Home’s location in the heart of the now well-established Vietnamese Community presents a proud history with an ‘emphasis on belonging, community, conversation, and nostalgia’. A stark difference from half a century before.

The main room showcases object-based pieces on low-rise tables and invites visitors to sit on straw mats to engage with the works. Viewing the artwork from this angle ‘breaks from the traditional administrative and patriarchal table, fostering dynamic interactions with the objects and each other’.

Duong Thuy Nguyen is 1 of 8 artists exhibiting their works. Her works draws on an amalgam of personal experiences, cultural histories, and the natural environment. Thân/Family Homes, 2023, sits alongside an impressive range of creations that symbolise ‘Home’, both in a locational sense, but also its ‘ever-shifting’ concept that can re-find ‘bearings and confidence’ for those in search of it.

KV Duong shed detailed insight into the curatorial and production processes that made the exhibition and programming possible. Collectively, No Place Like Home, featured workshops, panel discussions, performances, and food sharing events, and supporters included the Jerwood Arts New Work Fund, Arts Council, the Lien Viet fund, and the Islington and Shoreditch Housing Association.

There is good reason to believe that this will not be the last iteration of the exhibition. Each event was well attended and provided a necessary space for London’s Vietnamese Community to see its traditions, memory, and identity celebrated in such fashion.

Post-Grad Community continued the afternoon with lunch at Hanoi Café, 1 of the 13 Vietnamese restaurants that make up ‘Pho Mile’ on Kingsland Road. Since 1986, this revered eating destination has attracted culinary connoisseurs from around the world. Its appeal continues to attract those wanting authentic, traditional, and fresh Vietnamese food – including Post-Grad Community.