Forty of the top entries from a recent caricature painting contest in Vietnam are on display at the Vietnamese Women's Museum in Hanoi.

The contest, titled “Gender Equality: Picture It!,” was co-organized by the Embassy of Belgium, Belgian Development Agency in Vietnam, and UN Women Vietnam, in cooperation with the Vietnamese Women's Museum.

The contest took place from November 24, 2015 to January 18 this year and received 116 entries from all across Vietnam. 

Over half of the entrants were female and all entrants needed to be 18 years or older to participate.

According to organizers, the contest and its sideline events were part of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign - a movement that calls for action to end violence against women and girls that kicked off in November last year.

The competition was also part of activities to mark the International Women’s Day this year, on March 8.

Each contest submission was an expression of the artist’s thoughts on gender equality, women’s rights, female empowerment, and the positive changes they want to see.

English language teacher Nguyen Vu Xuan Lan won first prize in the competition and was awarded a study tour to Belgium.

Besides the opportunity to visit cities through Belgium, Lan will meet Belgian Deputy Prime Minister De Croo, several professional artists, and international publishing houses.

Belgian Ambassador Jehanne Roccas said the contest’s judges had a difficult time selecting a winner because the quality of the entries was very high, adding that without captions, the satirical paintings still made the judges smile, think, and even cry.

The exhibition will take place for 10 days at the museum at 36 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hoan Kiem District, ending on March 10.

Below are some paintings from the contest:

Painting by winner Nguyen Vu Xuan Lan

Painting by first runner-up Nguyen Duy Thanh

Painting by second runner-up Tran Thu Huong

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