Bird Cages

The long dresses known in Vietnam as áo dài have slits allowing freedom for the legs to move. They are worn with underlying pants, expressing elegance whether chosen for everyday excursions or elevated to high fashion statements through exquisite design and fine materials. This woman’s white dress best represents the history, tradition, and culture of her homeland.

I made this image in Hot An, a village dating back to the 1700s. I was enchanted not only by her regal posture, but the colors and textures I discovered on this building and in  the area’s dwellings, merchant establishments, public assembly halls and temples. A blend of Chinese, Japanese, and European influences, architectural details add individuality and are the source of visitors’ curiosity and rich storytelling by native and longtime residents.

I never discovered why these tiny bird cages were aligned on this golden wall. Instead, I permitted my imagination to soar in ways the birds in this precise setting could not. I thought about the woman’s dress, its slits hidden by her stillness, knowing it actually allows her at the time of her choosing to stride away or mount a bicycle and zoom freely. Perhaps those birds, I found myself thinking, know the key and code for bursting beyond their cages and are at rest, waiting only for the right moment to claim independence.