The Factory’s Reading Room houses a diverse and continually-expanding resource of publications spanning from modern to contemporary art, with particular geographical focus on Vietnam and South East Asia. From local and international art history books, exhibition catalogues, artist monographs, foreign institutional publications and art magazines, the Reading Room caters for a myriad of interested audience, from researchers and experts to those who are just starting out with curiosity towards the arts.

The Reading Room aims to:

• Encourage and nourish a pro-active reading community (via a series of ‘how and what to read’ workshops where experts from various fields will share insights on reading tactics, book selection, applying textual knowledge to real life, amongst others)
• Introduce important texts in the field to disseminate knowledge on art and culture, and to enhance art appreciation (via book launches and discussions with authors)
• Connect established and rising incubators of art publishing to the public (via talks with publishers, writers, editors, translators etc.)

You can check out Reading Room’s book list with description via our online library.

With free Wifi, comfortable seating areas and on-site staff to support you, drop by anytime between 10 am – 7 pm, Wed to Sun!

‘Bookworm’ is a series of curated public programs, as part of our Reading Room, aiming to convey the message that books are the building blocks for a creative and fruitful life. Despite publications in Vietnam on the arts, culture and history being scarce, there is a growing readership with varying age and interest that we at The Factory wish to address. By inviting experts and lovers of book to share and exchange their “knowledge blocks”, we hope not only to cultivate their inner minds, but also to encourage their collective growth as independent and critical thinkers. Bookworm aims to build this Reading Room with an active reading community.

Bookworm aims to nurture:

• Different reading skills (information extraction, cross-reference, text-based research etc.), to encourage readers to understand the nature of what it means to ‘research’, and to apply what they find to everyday life
• Critical discussion with writers from various fields to introduce different text formats (books, essays, comics, creative writings), to encourage readers to engage with relevant comparative discourse on the arts, humanities, and social science.