Born to a family of traditional embroiderers, Võ Trân Châu understands the power and materiality of threads and fabrics, and chooses textiles, particularly found fabrics and second-hand clothing, as materials for her artistic practice. By deploying these materials, imbued with their own personal stories, Châu portrays how strongly history reflects on the grand narrative of nation states and society. She delves into the social and cultural history of Vietnam to highlight issues surrounding labor, consumption and waste.
Châu’s selected exhibitions include: ‘Leaf PicEmperor in the Ancient Forest’ (The Factory Contemporary Arts Center, HCMC, 2020); ‘Where The Sea Remembers’ (The Mistake Room, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 2019); ‘Unfolding: Fabric of Our Life’ (Centre for Heritage, Art & Textile (CHAT)/MILL6, Hong Kong, 2019); ‘Bodies Survey(ed)’ (Sàn Art, HCMC, Vietnam, 2018); ‘Lingering at the Peculiar Pavillon’ (Manzi Art Space, Hanoi & Salon Saigon, HCMC, 2017); ‘The Foliage’ (VCCA, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2017); ‘Still (the) Barbarians’ (EVA International: Ireland’s Biennial of Contemporary Art, Limerick, Ireland, 2016); ‘Suzhou Documents’ (Suzhou Art Museum, Suzhou, China, 2016).
