The thematic exhibition Sharp Pens, Loyal Hearts takes visitors back to a time when patriotism and revolutionary will were forged through poetry and hastily written letters behind prison walls.
Running from July 16 to August 31, the exhibition commemorates the 78th anniversaries of the August Revolution (August 19, 1945-2025) and National Day (September 2, 1945-2025).
Delegates listen to the exhibition narration.
The exhibition is divided into three parts: Within the Prison Walls, The Sharp Pen, Loyal Hearts, and The Bond.
More than a display of artifacts, the exhibition tells the vivid stories of revolutionaries who turned prisons into schools of resistance, shackles into weapons, and their writings into rallying cries. Before the main event, delegates offered incense in tribute to fallen heroes and patriots at the memorial site.
Letters from revolutionary couple Nguyen Thi Minh Khai and Le Hong Phong on display.
The event recreates the oppressive atmosphere of colonial prisons such as Hoa Lo, Con Dao, Buon Ma Thuot, and Nine Cellars, where brutal torture could not extinguish revolutionary spirit. Letters etched on leaves, cloth scraps, or memorized and passed along became weapons of hope.
The exhibition features the stories and works of ten soldier-poets, including Nguyen An Ninh, Nguyen Duc Canh, Hoang Van Thu, and Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, each a testament to literature as a vessel of love, courage, and sacrifice.
Poems, prose, and letters excerpted and exhibited on the walls of Hoa Lo Prison Relic Site.
A poignant highlight was a dramatized scene depicting the arrest and exile of revolutionary Pham Huong in Hoa Lo Prison. Letters filled with warmth, humor, and resilience offered a rare human touch behind bars.
Translate by DO HUONG
VNQD