True to its reputation as a port city dating back to the late 17th century, Saigon (now administratively known as Ho Chi Minh City) is a confluence of cultural streams carrying millions of microhistories. Constantly in flux, the metropolis seems to molt and change skin every week, with new people and ideas emerging to replace previous ones. If you blink here, you might miss something (be it a trendy new cafe or a spirited Grab driver waltzing your way!). Saigon’s receptive attitude toward novelties thus offers fertile ground for unconventional seeds to germinate in the city’s ever-expanding contemporary art scene. 

Over the last few years, the Saigonese contemporary art landscape has undergone critical shifts. When world-renowned artist Dinh Q. Lê died in 2024—one of the founders of Sàn Art, an independent space with a nearly two-decade-long track record of nurturing artistic innovation in Vietnam—many local creatives experienced a profound sense of loss and uncertainty. For an art scene that heavily relies on personal initiatives (instead of governmental backing) to rally and maintain collective passion, Lê’s passing not only stirred up emotions but also raised questions about sustainability: How do we build cultural infrastructures with long-term visions while still supporting transient experimentations? 

Thankfully, other organizations—old and new—have risen to shoulder the art ecosystem’s cumulative weight. At the forefront is the multibranch Nguyen Art Foundation (NAF), which focuses on contemporary art collection, exhibition, and public education. Founded in 2018 by Quỳnh Nguyễn, NAF has served as an active agent in promoting homegrown artists and developing skills for the city’s cultural workers. Recent noteworthy happenings include “In Absence, Presence” (2024–25), a group show of four Vietnamese women artists who span different generations and practices, curated by NAF director Bill Nguyễn; and “DEMONS REVENGE” (2025), a lecture performance and screening program co-organized by NAF curator Thái Hà and the Fatal & Fallen film project, critically examining the concept of vengeance in the Anthropocene. The iconoclastic thinking of young artists and curators in Saigon continues to intertwine with community-building initiatives, providing checks and balances for the local art scene’s organic development.

Aside from NAF, other stakeholders fortified their dedication to the arts in Saigon. Galerie Quynh—the city’s longest-standing contemporary art gallery—celebrated its 21st anniversary with the retrospective group show “21 Years of Galerie Quynh” (2025), which traverses the gallery’s past and current artist rosters. Meanwhile, A. Farm International Artist Residency—which launched in 2018 and is currently managed by the independent artist-run space MoT+++ and the nonprofit Goethe-Institut Ho Chi Minh City—continues its Season 7 with open studios and public programs coordinated by local and international residents. As Saigon and the rest of the world enter an era of sociopolitical haze and economic upheaval, these private entities are crucial to the integrity of the contemporary art community. 

Embracing the old while welcoming the new—such should be Saigon’s motto. As nascent players emerge left and right, they bring their own ambitions, visions, and networks that enrich the art scene’s social fabric. Most notable was a private viewing put together by Phillips auction house, titled “Correspondence: Anselm Kiefer & Danh Võ” (2025), that brought Kiefer’s 1977 painting Wege der Weltweisheit into dialogue with Võ’s sculptures We the People (2011–16) and Untitled (2013). With loans from NAF and one of Phillips’s private clients in Vietnam, the viewing offered a new model of collaboration between local keyholders and the global art market, connecing art discourses in Vietnam to a larger framework. 

Echoing this collaborative spirit in an academic context was “Sensing Photography: Vietnam & Vectors of Global Photography” (2025), an international conference—co-organized by Trâm Lương and artist Jacqueline Hoàng Nguyễn—that gathered high-caliber art historians, artists, and cultural workers from Vietnam and elsewhere together to weave a more complex portrait of Vietnam’s photographic history. The accompanying exhibition, “A Radial System,” featured Dogma Collection’s private archive of Vietnam War photographs and other workshops directed by local and international practitioners. With these new initiatives, Saigon continues to serve as a hub for artistic exploration, where every idea has room to grow. 

As bizarre developments unfurl (cue the tariff war!) and unprecedented natural disasters erupt across the world, we are deeply reminded of our precarious existence and how much effort it takes to rebuild after a storm. Yet, despite regional and global turbulence, Saigon’s community remains nimble and resilient, with an innate spirit for innovation and their eyes fixed on uncharted horizons. After all, no problem is too daunting if we start the day with a cup of coffee with condensed milk!