IU South Bend professor Jonathan Nashel recently presented his photo exhibit “Motorbikes | Motion | Vietnam.”
Nashel, a history professor, spent a term as a Fulbright Scholar at the Vietnam National University in Hanoi. He gave lectures in universities throughout Vietnam and taught American and world history.
Nashel also developed an interest in the chaotic and colorful traffic patterns in downtown Hanoi. His observations prompted him to create the photography exhibit “Motorbikes | Motion | Vietnam.”
“Throughout my travels in 2023 and 2024, especially while living in Hanoi for six months, there was one constant: motorbikes,” Nashel said in a press release. “Motorbikes seem to fill every nook and cranny of the city landscape. I learned very quickly that Midtown Manhattan was child’s play in comparison.”
The scooters play critical roles in the lives of the citizens of Hanoi. They also serve as a symbol of social mobility.
“As one Vietnamese driver put it, ‘My motorbike is my freedom,’” Nashel said.
Some of the photos have a slight blur to them, which captures the energy of the scenes. Nashel took most of the shots with his iPhone. He said none of the photos was posed.
“I began from a fascination with all the different shapes and sizes of the objects drivers have strapped on,” Nashel said. “Many seemed to defy the limits of the imagination.”
In pursuit of certain shots, Nashel overcame his hesitancy, almost to his own peril.
“Sometimes, for a closer shot, this required going into the street,” Nashel said. “On more than one occasion I experienced quite the jolt of being pulled back to the sidewalk by my comrade in arms.” Nashel was referring to his wife, English professor Rebecca Brittenham, who joined him in Hanoi.
The subject of Vietnam has permeated Nashel’s scholarship. In 2005, he wrote a book about a CIA operative central to America’s activities in the Vietnam War. Many of Nashel’s classes at IU South Bend have focused on the country.
The scenes in Nashel’s photography exhibit aren’t about historical Vietnam. The pictures provide snapshots of contemporary life.
“These people seem less interested in the past and more intense about the rush to get to the future,” Nashel said.
Nashel’s exhibit is on display at the Schurz Library in South Bend through June 2025.
