Hanoi, Vietnam
2008
One of the coolest experiences I had in Hanoi when I visited on my second trip there over 15 years ago was eating pho -- the traditional Vietnamese soup -- in a sidewalk eatery while seated on a super short chair or what we Americans would call a stool.
This modest bamboo, wood and rattan stool, given to me all those years ago by dear friends in Hanoi, reflects the quiet elegance of North Vietnamese craft traditions. The seat is woven from split rattan in a tight herringbone pattern, resting on a low bamboo frame whose proportions speak to the floor-level intimacy of Vietnamese domestic life. In Hanoi’s streets and courtyards, such stools were at one time everywhere — part of the visual vocabulary of daily living — used for tea, conversation, and the unhurried sociability of shared meals.
Based on what I’ve read regarding this stool’s craftsmanship, oxidation, and patterns of wear, it probably predates when it came into my possession. The joinery is hand-split and bound rather than machine-cut, and the weave shows the tight, geometric discipline characteristic of Hanoi workshop production before mechanized techniques became more widespread in the 2010s. The surface has a softened, naturally burnished patina rather than a uniform factory finish, suggesting long use and hand-rubbed oil finishing. Taken together, these details point to an origin in the mid to late 20th century — and already nearly as old as me when it was gifted to me.
The couple who gave it first introduced me to Hanoi’s culture of street dining and its easy merging of public and private space. Through them, I came to see how such a simple object quietly structures social life: light, portable, and durable, it can turn sidewalks and open spaces into places of gathering.
Beyond its utility, such a stool seems to carry a refined austerity. Natural fibers, disciplined weaving, and a surface softened by time give the object its understated beauty. It is at once artifact and companion — a reminder of friendship, of place, and of the enduring intelligence of everyday design.
If this post had a soundtrack, it would be my Vietnam trilogy on Mixcloud:
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