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.

In the series, people are often covered, hidden, symbolising how Vietcongs used to live hiddenly in tunnels or as spies. Meanwhile, Vietnamese working in the financial districts of Ho Chi Minh City pass by a red pop-up studio while they rush for their lunch-break, walking the thin line between fiction and reality, likewise the whole photographic series.”.