A photo exhibition titled “The Mekong, Stories of Man” by French-Vietnamese photographer will be on display at L’Espace (24 Trang Tien street, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi) from May 14 until June 11.

A photo by Lam Duc Hien, who spent his childhood on the shores of the Mekong.

Lam Duc Hien traveled the Mekong river for a 4,200 km stretch, following its waters from the bustling Cuu Long (Nine Dragons) Mekong Delta in Vietnam all the way to its source in the snow-covered Tibetan plateau.

This cross-continent journey bears a special meaning for Hien as a French-Vietnamese photographer, who spent his childhood on the shores of the Mekong in Laos. In this visual diary, Hien interweaves his personal story with that of the river’s current inhabitants. Here, the Mekong simultaneously connects and divides lands, cultures, and destinies.

Hien was born on the shores of the Mekong river in Paksé, Southern Laos in 1966.

He has testified to the consequences of the 20th and 21st century’s major conflicts on civilians around the world, including Romania, Russia, Bosnia, Chechnya, Rwanda, South Sudan, and above all in Iraq, where he had covered for over 25 years.

Hien has won numerous awards, including the Leica Prize, the Great European Award of the city of Vevey, and the World Press Photo, among others. He is represented by the prestigious Agence VU’, a photography agency established in 1986 that has headquarters on Rue Saint-Lazare in Paris. It works with both photojounalists and art photographers.