Phở, pronounced “fuh”, a Vietnamese beef rice noodle soup, integral to Vietnamese cultural heritage. The story of Phở mirrors that of Việt Nam itself: its dramatic evolution from French colonisation in the late 19th century to the division of the country into two; from “reunification” to the mass exodus of boat people at the end of the Việt Nam war in 1975; and from the fall of Communism and the end of the Cold War to the transnational movement of the Vietnamese diaspora.

I Love Phở uses Phở as a metaphor to interpret and reveal a Việt Nam whose people and history are as varied and complex as the preparation and cooking of a bowl of Phở itself. Through its own global journey, Phở is unique, flexible and versatile in borrowing, adapting, modifying, ultimately creating its own culinary experience. It challenges all notions of the hybrid, traditional and authentic where adaptation, migration and movement are common in an era of intense globalisation.

I Love Phở combines the work of seven artists; a catalogue including essays, non-fictions, recipes and poems written by well-known Vietnamese and non-Vietnamese writers; guided tours; Phở tasting and Phở cooking demonstrations. This aims to create dialogues between visual artists, local communities and broader audiences exploring issues of identity, history, culture and diaspora over a bowl of Phở. Each destination also includes the work of local artists commissioned specifically for the exhibition.

I Love Phở focuses on the complex and multi-layered nature of Phở through the complex, subtle and a hybrid weaving of textures, flavours and ingredients. A metaphor for the mixing of cultures. Its sensation of taste explodes simultaneously in a contradictory process of how we make meanings through fragments, conjunctions and disjunctions.

As Peta Mathias, author of Noodle Pillow concludes "Phở – Viet Nam in a bowl, heaven in a spoon, culture in a sip"



The tour of I Love Phở is supported by: