The "Vietnamese Equal Family" photo contest: Pictures speak without a word

(VNF) – Winners of the photo contest "Vietnamese equal family" initiated by the Embassy of Sweden were announced on Wednesday (June 21) in Hanoi.

The awarding ceremony was held by the Embassy of Sweden, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Vietnamese Women Museum.

The contest, kick started in May, bring together dedicated pictures from three regions of Vietnam.

Presenting Award to winners

Pictures participating in the competition depict simple yet precious moment in the lives of Vietnamese families, from the highland hamlet to seaside village, from modern city to rural areas, from small-size family to multi-generation family.

The photos tell the stories of different family's daily routines, in which the members are together shouldering the responsibilities, through the image of a father teaching his son to swim, husband helping wife to feed their child or husband and wife working together on the paddy field in harvesting season.

Besides satisfying technical criteria of photography like composition, lighting, color, exposure, the pictures are evaluated based on their capability of capturing real-life moments, reflecting the real bonds among the characters, which convey a strong message on gender equality in family.

Speaking at the opening address, Mr. Gustav Dahlin, Head of the Politic and Trade department of the Embassy of Sweden said “To our country, equality starts from families, which serves as the solid foundation for a civilized, innovative and prosperous society. Sweden has been putting lots of efforts in achieving gender equality, we have gone a long way on this journey. However, our presence here today does not mean to showcase what we’ve done and how we’ve done it."

"We all understand that there is a long road awaiting us ahead, so we come here to share with you our experiences in this issue, meanwhile take opportunity to learn from Vietnam’s experiences.” The diplomat noted.

At the ceremony, organizing board announced the best arts works, in which the first & second place was decided by the jury board and the third was decided by Facebook users.

The first prize winner was Nguyen Huu Thong (30), a staff of the Catholic Relief Services, with the picture titled “Sharing work”. The photo was taken by Thong during a working trip in the central province of Quang Binh.

In the trip, he came across a middle-age couple, of which the husband is a handicapped person: He has lost one of his legs in an ordnance explosion accident. Despite deficient physical health, he keeps persevering to his hard work, especially he is always happy to share the burden with his wife.

According to senior director Tran Luc, one of the contest judges, the contest is a collection of documentary reflecting humanity in real life.

The effect it creates is higher than any kind of slogan, as it awakes love, care and the sense of responsibility inside people's hearts and therefore inspire them to actively make a change. Life is beautiful if equality is achieved, he stressed.

According to the Embassy of Sweden, 20 best photos of the contest will be on display in the Vietnamese Women Museum till late July.

Based on the success of the "Vietnamese equal family" photo contest 2017, the Embassy of Sweden in Hanoi is planning to hold the similar event next year, in celebration of the International Women’s Day./.

*More images from the exhibition:

Little kids enjoying the exhibition

"Happy Family" - Tran Minh Tuan, HCM. City

"Sharing work" - first place winner, by Nguyen Huu Thong (Hanoi)

2nd place winner picture "Working together" (Tran Phuc Thach, Lao Cai)

Senior director Tran Luc interviewed by the VN national TV

Visitors at the exhibition

( Phi Yen )