Chơi rì 2025 | Trạm chơi tại Hà Nội
“Chơi Rì 2025: Play Station in Hanoi” took place at COMPLEX 01 as a special journey about play. “Chơi Rì” is an art project where children in Na Rì, Bắc Kạn become game designers using local materials from their own living environment. In Tày/Nùng language, Na Rì means “long rice field,” and “Chơi Rì” carries the meaning of extending and continuing the ways we play.
The project stems from a recognition that urbanization and changing lifestyles have gradually led to the disappearance of many traditional games and outdoor play habits. Safe and open play spaces are shrinking, replaced by roads and buildings. Children are increasingly drawn into passive forms of play, relying on pre designed toys with fixed rules and spending more time on digital devices. Within this context, Chơi Rì unfolds as a journey where the children of Na Rì are free to explore, imagine, and create games from their surroundings.
Play Station in Hanoi concluded the project with an exhibition and a series of workshops, where audiences were invited not only to observe but also to participate, return to childhood memories, and rethink the changes in how we play.
Exhibition “Touching Childhood Memories”
Throughout the event, the exhibition displayed the children’s creations as artworks, games, and stories. From the oversized tai voi used to listen to the wind, to Thuồng Luồng (Giao Long) figures, from Khu Chợ with small houses built by the children to handmade musical instruments, every corner carried imagination and local knowledge. The exhibition evoked images of terrain, community structure, and family living habits in Na Rì, offering a vivid glimpse into a world shaped by children’s eyes, hands, and playful thinking.
Workshop “Tai Vỏi Tai Voi! Vừa đi vừa dỏng”
The first workshop opened a journey into the world of sound. Children made a simple tai voi that helped amplify listening, then walked together while paying close attention to the sounds of nature and the city. Rustling leaves, whispering wind, chirping birds, and the rhythm of traffic all blended into a lively symphony, reminding everyone that even the smallest sounds carry their own stories and paths.
Workshop “Xưởng nhạc cụ bi bô”
On November 23, “Xưởng nhạc cụ bi bô” transformed everyday objects into unique instruments. Children learned how sound is created, then experimented with available materials such as rubber bands, rice grains, and bottle caps to build guitars, drums, or quirky horns. Like a child’s first spontaneous utterances, “bi bô” became a way to freely explore, play, and improvise music without scores or rules, while families shared moments of joyful creation.
Workshop “Xưa xửa này nay”
With the theme of “Sinh vật huyền bí,” this workshop bridged generations and connected people with nature. The session began with an animal pairing game, where children acted out secret creatures using gestures and sounds, filling the space with laughter. When everyone was ready, they formed a moving line and traveled into an imagined old forest to hear the story of Giao Long, a mysterious creature in Vietnamese legend. Through light, sound, and movement, the story of a damaged forest and a swept away nest unfolded. In response to Giao Long’s call for help, the children took on challenges: rebuilding the nest, creating tree planting machines, and even inventing a new friend so Giao Long would not be lonely. The workshop ended with a tender moment as the Giao Long puppet appeared to play and talk with the children.
Workshop “Tổ Xây Phố”
Designed to evoke how children perceive and imagine “home,” this workshop invited participants to step into Na Rì through storytelling and works in the exhibition. Inspired by what they saw and heard, each child envisioned the house they wanted to build. Using gathered materials such as branches, dry leaves, bottles, cardboard, and pebbles, they created a small neighborhood filled with swings, star gazing huts, snail houses, fish ponds, and meat drying racks. The session concluded with a “tìm trứng khủng long” game, turning the neighborhood into a lively playground of curiosity and collaboration.
Chơi Rì 2025: Play Station in Hanoi concluded with countless curious footsteps, eyes lighting up with discovery, and moments when adults and children sat down together to truly play. The final workshop served as a gentle reminder of the value of play, time, and nature in each person’s journey of growth.
