Photo Walk: Bui Vien After Dark

Photography by:

Dean Scutt

Ivan Kamenskiy

These photographs capture Bui Vien Street, Saigon's pulsating heart, after the sun dips below the horizon. As darkness descends, a different life ignites. While some come for fleeting amusement, for countless others, this vibrant chaos is their daily reality.

Bui Vien thrives on a unique human alchemy – a potent mix of desires and dreams. It's a bustling ecosystem fueled by our collective lust for life, for connection, for escape.

Is it a shadowy underbelly, a descent into the city's dark side? Or a vibrant spark that illuminates the night? The answer hinges on your perspective.

Take a closer look – at the neon signs that paint the night sky, the rhythmic thump of bass spilling from overflowing bars, the faces etched with laughter or fatigue. Consider the countless hours poured into maintaining this ecosystem – the tireless cooks, the watchful security guards, the street vendors weaving their way through the throngs.

Pham Ngu Lao may not be for everyone, but it undeniably exists. Perhaps, by peering through the lens, we gain a deeper understanding of this world, its complexities, and the lives that unfold within it.

Ivan Kamenskiy

This is not what most people think of when they think of Vietnam, the nat-geo esc fluff of conical hats, cascading rice paddies, poverty with a smile.

No, this is a Lynchian onslaught of sensual overload, it’s confusing, nobody quite knows why they are there, yet once you see it you can’t look away, you have to go deeper, you have to try and understand.

But in truth you probably never will, just try to enjoy it for what it is, part entertainment, part CIA torture method and proof that weather you’re biking wistfully through mountain villages or in the throbbing heart of the city having opposing DJ’s blasted at each side of your head there are some things in this country that you will never fully comprehend and thats ok.

Love it, hate it, it doesn’t matter, just embrace it.

Dean Scutt