Rare Sea is pleased to introduce “Points of Relation”, a pop-up reading room on photography book, opening from May 7 to May 31, 2026. A response to the exhibition “the forest lives on as unfinished film reels”, “Points of Relation” brings together a collection of photography books released in Vietnam over the past three years, curated by Lê Nguyên Phương and Mai Nguyên Anh. These publications explore stories of community, labor, and transformations in contemporary Vietnamese society through the lens of young photographers from across the country.
At times intimate whispers, letters, and diary entries addressed to loved ones, at other times empathy with communities facing difficulties caused by the astonishing pace of urban growth; the featured publications emphasize the multidimensional connections between various facets of the society. Not merely pages of paper, these publications are surfaces bridging relations surrounding us.
On a lovely Saturday afternoon, May 9, 2026, we launched “Points of Relation”, a pop-up reading room in the session of reading photography books together with Lê Nguyên Phương. As Phương walked with care and dedication through each selected publication, excitement wove through the space: dear friends gathered, leafing through book after book, hand over hand, page by page.
“Points of Relation” is a satellite event of “the forest lives on as unfinished film reels”, a group exhibition of Aliansyah Caniago, Xuân-Hạ, Rab, and Hoàng Vũ.
📸 by Nguyen Le Tuan Kiet & Do Ngoc Lam
