Vivid illustrations celebrate Yangon’s elegant female street sellers

From nga chauk (dried fish), to kyaw sone (fried dough) and tha yat thee (mango), street snacks in Yangon are often sold straight from the head of the seller, invariably a woman.

Now, Yangon’s elegant female street vendors have been immortalized in a series of vibrant illustrations that go on show today in Sanchaung Township.

“We found it fascinating how poised and beautiful the smiling women remain throughout the day,” designer Monika Traikov told Coconuts Yangon. “We also noticed throughout during this project that it is only women who carry items on their heads – the men use their arms or shoulders.”

Traikov and two other female artists from Yangon Redesigned, a local design firm known for stylized images of iconic city sights, started work on Head Shop! a month ago.

Taking watercolor sketches, they created digital images that have been printed on posters and postcards.

“Yangon Redesigned is all about taking the traditional aspects of Yangon, and Myanmar, culture, and making it contemporary,” said Traikov.

The firm already has ideas for future shows in the works.

“We highlight the mixing of traditional aspects in modern culture to help preserve, and also to celebrate,” said Traikov. “We also wanted to encourage Yangonites to think outside of the box in terms of what is possible for graphic design and art.”

Head Shop! opens today at Nex Studio, 9 Kyaung Lan, 6A, Sanchaung, Yangon. It starts at 6:30pm.

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