"On April 30th, 1975, a North Vietnamese tank rolled through the gate of the Presidential Palace in Saigon, signifying the end of the cruel American War and the beginning of a new independent era from Western regimes.
More than 40 years later, “Charlie surfs on Lotus Flowers” depicts post-war Vietnam through a sequence of metaphorical responses to its current Hollywoodian limbo between the rise of the free-market economy and the Communist only-one Party that still rule with uncontested power since the end of the war, disappointing the hope of a democratic and free country. History repeats itself, looking at the West.
In fact, according to the Pew Global Poll, 95% of people in Vietnam agree that most people are better off under capitalism, even if there is inequality.
Peopled by a young and energetic population, the country is likely to become one of the world’s fastest-growing economies – the next Asian Tiger – still ruled with undisputed order and control, yet eager to ride the wave of economic freedom".
You can order the photobook Charlie surfs on Lotus Flowers, published by AKINA (2018), here.
"Developing his own visual map over the course of several trips, Sapienza began to assemble symbols that hinted at the friction between freedom and control". (Sophie Wright for Lens Culture)
"Simone Sapienza depicts post-war Vietnam through a sequence of metaphorical responses to its current Hollywoodian limbo, surfing himself on a new wave of documentary photography". (Laurence Cornet for PHmuseum)
Larger editorial edit available on request.
