HCM CITY  (VNS) — A collection of 500 ao dai (Vietnamese women traditional tunic) is part of an exhibition that opened on Tuesday at the Ao Dai Museum owned by designer Si Hoang.

The event, held to celebrate International Museum Day (May 18), features ao dai dating back to 1930.

They include ao dai owned by Nguyen Thi Dinh, the first woman major general to serve in the Viet Nam People's Army, former deputy president Nguyen Thi Binh and HCM City's well-known cai luong (reformed opera) artists including Kim Cuong and Bach Tuyet.

The collection also includes the wedding ao dai presented to the museum by Ton Nu Thi Ninh, former ambassador of Viet Nam to the EU. The dress was worn by Ninh's mother-in-law, and then by Ninh and her daughter-in-law.

The designer, a former art lecturer at the HCM City University of Architecture, said the exhibition would help young people learn more about Vietnamese culture.

The exhibition at 206/19/30 Long Thuan Street in District 9 will close at the end of the month. — VNS