Dong Nai flourishes through literary and artistic creativity

After more than a year of implementing the two-tier local government model and expanding its development space, the literary and artistic landscape of Dong Nai City has undergone a significant transformation.

A scene from the cai luong (reformed opera) play Cai quoc chan hung (National Reform and Revitalization), written and directed by People's Artist Que Anh, depicts the theme of mergers and streamlining the administrative apparatus.

The vibrant and diverse landscape of Dong Nai has become a powerful source of inspiration, encouraging artists to engage closely with reality and produce works that authentically reflect the city's new image and development aspirations.

Expanded space for creativity

Looking back on the journey so far, People's Artist Giang Manh Ha, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Stage Artists Association and Chairman of the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association, said the two-tier local government model has given the city's cultural, literary and artistic activities a new look. With more members in the association's specialized sections, a broader operational area and activities organized on a larger scale, the creative space and opportunities for artistic experience available to writers and artists have reached a new level.

"The expanded space enables artists to travel more extensively, gain deeper practical experience, and live alongside the people and share their daily rhythms. This allows them to draw inspiration, achieve creative breakthroughs, and better serve political tasks and society's spiritual and cultural life. The diversity of the land, its people, and its culture has become a catalyst for the creation of many new works bearing the distinctive imprint of Dong Nai City," said Giang Manh Ha.

For more than a year, the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association has received thousands of works from members of its 10 specialized sections. Many of these works have been published in newspapers, Dong Nai Literature and Arts Magazine, websites and on Facebook. The association is now urgently preparing to digitize these works. This will create a vast digital repository offering a comprehensive, authentic and vivid portrait of the land and people of Dong Nai in the new era.

In particular, in response to the special 500-day-and-night emulation campaign themed “Unity – Discipline – Efficiency – Breakthrough, building a civilized and modern Dong Nai,” the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association has called on writers and artists to actively create works serving the city's political mission. These works will not be confined to the pages of books, galleries or exhibitions. The association will promote them widely to accompany the Party Committee, government, and people of the city on its development journey.

The Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association currently has 616 members, including 118 who are also members of national-level specialized associations. They constitute the core force contributing to the locality's development across literary and artistic fields.

Creative achievements inspired by reality

Inspired by his love for his homeland and pride as someone born and raised in Phu Rieng Commune, author Vu Duy Cuong composed the song Phu Rieng vung buoc tuong lai (Phu Rieng Striding Toward the Future). The work was introduced to mark exactly one year since Phu Rieng Commune began operating under the two-tier local government model and reorganized its hamlets into six new hamlets: Phu Hiep, Phu Long, Phu Vinh, Phu Binh, Phu Hung, and Phu Thinh. Every melody and lyric conveys confidence in Phu Rieng Commune's renewal and unity, as well as its aspirations for development in the new stage.

Musician Tran Cao Van, a member of the Music Specialized Board of the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association operating in the northern area of Dong Nai City, said, “The greatest benefit after more than a year of the merger is not only the increase in membership or the expansion of the operational area but also the convergence of emotions and life experiences among artists from different regions. That convergence has generated many new ideas, enabling each member to produce a wealth of outstanding works while contributing to the overall development of Dong Nai City."

Photography has also recorded notable achievements. Hundreds of new photographic works have been created, with artists receiving awards both locally and elsewhere, contributing to promoting the image of Dong Nai. Notably, artist Nguyen Van Hoa of Trang Bom Ward won First Prize in the 2026 Radiant Binh Minh Photo Contest with the work Kiem tra gang tay y te (Medical Glove Inspection), and Second Prize in the art photography contest on the theme Portrait of a Dong Nai Armed Forces Soldier with the work Anh mat canh troi (Eyes Watching the Sky).

On July 10, the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association organized a public judging session for the Dong Nai - Aspiration to Rise photo contest. After more than four months, the Organizing Committee received 176 entries from 30 authors. It is expected to present 11 awards in July 2026, with the first prize worth VND 5 million.

Meanwhile, fine arts continue to demonstrate strong creativity through oil paintings, lacquer paintings, ceramic mosaics, and sculptures by artists including Nguyen Quang Hoang, Dao Tan Hung, Tran Chi Ly, and Tran Dinh Thang. Field trips to northern Dong Nai, particularly border areas and ethnic minority communities, have provided artists with abundant inspiration, helping them portray the natural beauty, people, and vitality of Dong Nai following the merger.

The fields of literature, theatre and cinema, dance, and folk arts have also seen positive developments, with artists closely following social life and drawing on current issues and grassroots changes in their creative work. The merger of hamlets, villages, and neighborhoods, urban development, the preservation of the cultural identity of ethnic groups, and different aspects of workers' lives have all inspired works rich in the spirit of contemporary life. Each work reflects the beauty of the homeland, spreads positive values, and inspires faith, solidarity, and a desire to contribute among the people of Dong Nai.

At the Dong Nai Literature and Arts Association's preliminary conference reviewing the first six months of 2026 on July 7, Nguyen Van Dung, Deputy Head of the Commission for Information, Education and Mass Mobilization of the City Party Committee, emphasized, "As Dong Nai City enters a new stage of development following the reorganization of administrative units, literature and the arts must further strengthen their role in accompanying local development. Artists should continue to uphold tradition, maintain political steadfastness and social responsibility, nurture their creative aspirations, continually renew their artistic thinking, produce more works with high ideological and artistic value, uphold what is right and beautiful while combating wrongdoing and negative phenomena, and contribute to building Dong Nai people who are comprehensively developed, civilized, and compassionate."

After more than a year of implementing the two-tier local government model, Dong Nai's artists have not only gained more favorable conditions for creative work but have also gradually affirmed their role through works closely connected with the realities of life. This also provides a foundation for the city's literature and arts to continue making breakthroughs and pursuing greater integration.

By My Ny – Translated by Minh Hong, Minho