Folk painting
The tradition of figurative art has always been alive and well in Vietnam, as evidenced by the many folk prints. In painting, two genres can be distinguished: folk painting and modern painting.
The history of folk painting dates back to the 12th century. It began at the same time as ancestor worship, under the Ly dynasty, established in northern Vietnam. With a decorative function, it adorned homes and ancestral altars. To satisfy the greatest number, it was produced at low cost, with little concern for quality. Themes revolved around daily life (harvesting, family events, etc.), domestic animals and sacred figures (deities and genies). The motifs are roughly engraved in negative, in wood, to be reproduced on paper. Families specialized in carving these wooden templates. All the artist has to do is apply the colors of his or her choice. The only ambition of this art is to be harmonious and pleasing to the eye. The Vietnam Fine Arts Museum in Hanoi preserves some very early printing plates.
Stylistic schools can be distinguished according to the place of production. In Tranh Dong Ho's technique, colors are not mixed. Shapes are developed from black outlines. The artist superimposes as many plates as he wishes with colors. Dong Ho paintings are used to decorate altars, and on a large scale, pagodas and communal houses.
In Hanoi, Hang Trong paintings are executed on a black background that brings out the colors. In the center of the country, Sinh paintings are popular for worship. A single engraving plate is used to lay out the contours and large shapes.
Sculpture
Influenced by the three great religions of India and China - Hinduism, Confucianism and Buddhism - Vietnamese sculpture has evolved continuously over the centuries. Figurative, it adorns temples, citadels, pagodas and tombs.
In the north, the first king in Vietnamese history, Huong Vuong (his reign began in 2888 BC) and then the An Duong Vuong dynasty influenced the codes of sculpture. Stone, hitherto used to fashion tools, was adopted for sculpture. Legendary figures and stone divinities made their appearance in citadels. Ten centuries BC, China imbues iconography with its beliefs and philosophy, as can be seen in the temples. The Dai Viet (1054-1400) corresponds to the independence and rise of Buddhism, particularly in northern Vietnam. One of the first Buddhist sculptures in the north is said to be the Amida Buddha, erected in the Phat Tich temple in 1057.
Over the centuries, Buddha mixed with agricultural scenes in the sculptures of commercial houses.
Hanoi School of Fine Arts
1925 saw the creation of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts d'Indochine in Hanoi, a branch of the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Paris, renamed the Université des Beaux-Arts du Viêt Nam in 1945. The pictorial tradition took a new turn in contact with Western art. Today, Hanoi's Ecole des Beaux-Arts painters are enjoying ever-increasing success at auction.
Nguyen Phan Chanh (1892-1984) joined the academy as soon as it opened. A painter of traditional scenes, he renewed silk painting as practiced in China and Japan from the 15th century onwards. To this end, he explored printing and painting methods. Inspired by the rural world, he adopted brown, ochre and black tones, enhanced with whites. He is close to the people, and depicts intimate scenes with humanity. The authenticity of his broadly painted scenes means that, decades after his death, he remains Vietnam's most sought-after artist.
The fusion of Asian and Western influences led to the emergence of modern Vietnamese art. It is driven by the "Tri, Van, Lan, Can" group. After Nguyen Phan Chanh, the first generation of painters included Nguyên Sang, Nguyên Gia Tri, To Ngoc Van and Bui Xuân Phai.
Vietnamese Modernism
a "painter of Hanoi's soul", Bui Xuân Phai (1921-1988) graduated in 1945. He was one of the last graduates of the Hanoi School of Fine Arts. He joined the Communist maquis and took part in the Revolution. Returning to Hanoi in 1952, he explored his favorite themes: the streets of Hanoi, family portraits and still lifes, at odds with his militant style. He taught at the Fine Arts School and published illustrations in newspapers. In 1957, he became involved in an attempt to liberalize the arts and letters, which clashed with the party's notion of art at the service of the people. The movement was ruthlessly suppressed by the authorities. Bui Xuân Phai escaped the labor camp, but lost his teaching post. From 1960 to 1988, physically weakened by the deprivations endured in the maquis and lacking any financial income, Bui Xuân Phai led a difficult life, but with unfailing fidelity to his vocation as an artist. Bui Xuân Phai achieved posthumous fame. His best-known canvases, depicting the streets of Hanoi bathed in a sense of solitude and melancholy, are sought-after on the art market.
To Ngoc Van (1906-1954), or To Tu, studied fine arts at the same time as Nguyen Phan Chanh. He became a teacher and influenced generations of painters. Appreciated for his humanism and use of color, several of his paintings are on display at the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum.
Nguyên Gia Tri (1908-1993), painter and lacquerer, revealed his talent in the production of lacquered panels. His rich palette, punctuated by inlays, revolutionized the lacquer technique. From 1966 onwards, his abstract paintings further revolutionized Vietnamese art.
Panorama of the current scene
The early 1990s saw the opening up of the Vietnamese art scene. Despite the lack of structures, an art market began to take shape in Hanoi. Dematerialized sales also helped young artists to see a future. Saigon and Hanoi now boast a dozen cultural spaces open to contemporary art. To compensate for the lack of galleries, artists are looking for less conventional places to exhibit. The CHV (Cultural and Creative Hubs Vietnam) art promotion program, spread over 3 years and funded by the European Union, was launched in 2018. This project is relayed by six cultural hubs including VICAS Art Studio, Heritage Space, Hanoi Grapevine or San Art.
Contemporary artists
A surge of multidisciplinary talent characterizes contemporary creation. One of the first to gain recognition abroad, Bùi Công Khánh is a painter, sculptor, musician, video artist and performer. In the 1990s, he came to prominence for his performances dealing with the right of expression in communist Vietnam. Born in 1972 in Danang, he studied oil painting at the College of Fine Arts in Ho Chi Min City. His subjects of inspiration range from contemporary history to Buddhist and Taoist philosophy. In his series of paintings on porcelain, he combines traditional drawing with contemporary motifs such as a motorcycle or advertisements. He recently signed Dislocate, sculptures carved from jackfruit wood. This material is usually used to make traditional boats. Bùi Công Khánh has been invited to exhibit in Israel, France, Asia and the United States.
An international star of conceptual art, Dinh Q Lê was born in 1968 near the Cambodian border. In 1979, his family fled the Khmer Rouge. He grew up in Los Angeles, and studied photography in New York before returning to Vietnam. In 1996, he settled in Ho Chi Minh City. From the 1990s onwards, his hand-woven photographs, produced using traditional techniques, have been much admired. His best-known photo, From Vietnam to Hollywood, is a montage of war images taken from newspapers. All subjects related to the Vietnam War, memory and emigration are recurrent themes in his work. His images have been shown in the USA, Australia, London and, in 2022, at the Musée du quai Branly Jacques Chirac in Paris.
Born in 1965, Nguyen Thai Tuan lives and works in Da Lat. He began by studying art propaganda at the Hue School of Fine Arts, but soon decided to follow his personal inspiration. At a time when everyone was leaving for the United States, he chose to remain in Vietnam. His work takes a critical look at his country, its history and the violence of social change. But collective memory remains at the heart of his paintings. No doubt echoing the atrocities he witnessed, he paints headless bodies in enclosed spaces, imprisoned or suffering. In his striking Black Paintings series, anonymous beings, prostrate between black walls, are subjected to violent lighting. In others, headless, limbless figures, floating in their shirts, crouch with their backs to the wall. His paintings have been censored in his own country, but this has not prevented him from exhibiting in Milan and at the Paris Asian Art Fair.
Talents of tomorrow
From the next generation, the painter to follow is Ha Manh Thang. Born in 1980, he focuses on socio-political and cultural themes. Based in Hanoi, he creates richly textured abstract paintings on canvas or paper. In other series, he integrates classical figures into his paintings. More recently, he has been hijacking architectural symbols such as the towers of Angkor Wat and village houses, sprinkling them with pop culture. This is the artist who constantly juggles historical references and visual explorations. An exhibition of his work was held at the Vincom Center for Contemporary Art in Hanoi.
Phan Huy Thong is one of Vietnam's most promising visual artists. Born in 1981 in Ha Tay, he lives in Hanoi. His style combines the ancient method of lacquer with acrylic and mixed techniques. In the same spirit, he mixes ancient symbols and topical subjects to raise awareness.
The street offers a stage for young talent through community art projects. For the Phuc Tan collaborative project, 16 Vietnamese artists took part in an installation that embellished the riverside street in Hanoi's Phuc Tân district. Once abandoned, the street has become an open-air museum where children can play. Its creation has enabled local artists to overcome difficulties while creating an exhibition space open to all. A place where contemporary art meets the public. A new experience, offering an alternative to the lack of official structures.
