Photographer Birgit Kleber’s VIET-DUC brings together twenty portraits and personal stories of people of Vietnamese descent who have shaped German cultural, culinary and social life across generations and professions.

Each portrait captures someone who built a life, a career or a body of work in Germany, navigating the experience of belonging to two cultures at once. The exhibition looks directly at questions of visibility and representation, presenting its subjects as people with specific histories and achievements that speak for themselves..

The opening evening on 16 April includes catering by The Duc Ngo, one of Germany’s most celebrated Vietnamese restaurateurs and a face in the exhibition himself.

Programme

Thursday, 16.04
19h Opening with catering by The Duc Ngo

Friday, 17.04
19:00 Film Screening
Endlich sichtbar: Von Vietnam nach Deutschland by Minh An Szabo de Bucs

Saturday, 18.04
19:00 Film Screening
Made in Germany by Duc Ngo Ngoc and Saigon Kiss by Hong An Nguyen

Sunday 19.04
16:00 Artist Talk – Michael Biedowicz in conversation with Birgit Kleber

18:00 Reading – Khuê Pham and Mai Duong Kieu, followed by Finissage

Photographer

Birgit Kleber, a renowned photographer and artist from Berlin, Germany, has dedicated 40 years to mastering portrait photography. Her deeply narrative images and continuous experimentation with expressive forms have earned significant acclaim both from the public and critics alike. This is evident from her participation in over 30 solo exhibitions and numerous group exhibitions, with recent events at prestigious venues like the Helmut Newton Foundation and the Museum of Photography in Berlin, Haus am Kleistpark in Berlin, and Alte Feuerwache in Berlin.

Her works have been exhibited at prestigious art institutions worldwide, including the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, Berlinische Galerie in Berlin, Deutsches Filmmuseum DFF in Frankfurt, Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin, International Center of Photography ICP in New York, and The New York Public Library.

In the “Viet – Duc: 20 Faces, 20 Stories” campaign, photographer Birgit Kleber opts to convey the most authentic portraits, eschewing embellishment and staging. The campaign aims to reveal and highlight the strong personalities of 20 successful Viet-German individuals, illuminating their inspiration beyond their communities.

Featuring

Dr. Mai Thi Nguyen-Kim – Chemist, science journalist and science communicator

Prof. Ta Thi Minh Tam – Professor of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy

Dr. Kien Nghi Ha – Researcher in cultural and political studies, curator and author

Minh Duc Pham – Artist

Phan Thi Minh Khai – Actress, TV presenter

(S)TRONG Trọng Hiếu – Singer and Artist

Nam Duy Nguyen – politician

Khuong Dat Vuong – Entrepreneur, author and restaurant owner

Khuê Phạm – Author and journalist

Vanessa Vu – Author and journalist

Mai Dương Kiều – Actress