The purpose of this book is to trace the incredible adventure of the vietnamese pictorial art.

This book proposes a synthetic approach and study the genesis as well as the evolution of the Vietnamese pictorial art, from the creation of the Indochina's Fine Art School by V. Tardieu and Nguyen Nam Son, from 1925 to now.

After analyzing the artistic situation of the country at the beginning of the century, it defines the parameters that have been taken into account to open the School. It establishes a comparison between the literary life (especially focusing on the Tu Luc Van Doan movement) and the nature of the pictorial creation, both can be qualified as Romantic Realism. Artists as Le Pho, Nguyen Phan Chanh, To Ngoc Van or Nguyen Gia Tri brilliantly illustrated this stream, multiplying the diversity of materials (silk, oil, lacquer). In that moment, an important creative stream emerged and was ready to reveal the multiple faces of the Vietnamese soul and sensibility.

 

In spite of the political torments the country had to deal with, this creative ardor never faded, adapting to the requirements of the period. Thus, during the fight for independence, painters who left to the Viet Bac dealt with the difficult mutation of their art, imposed by the situation. It’s now a question of conforming to the rules Social-Realism art. Nguyen Thu Nghiem, Nguyen Sang, Bui Xuan Phai or Dong Bich Lien tried to follow them but not without a certain heartbreak. Those dilemmas resulted into a new movement Nhan Van Giai Pham. Most artists, alone and in difficult situations, decided then to follow their own path. In the south untill 1975, an active cultural life was still able to exist. But after the reunification, the country entered in a dark period.

 

It’s only during the 80’s and with the Doi Moi policy that we come to a new era. Like a wave, painting, whatever style considered, becomes a medium through which emotions are released after a long period of frustration. An extraordinary bloom of artists resuscitates or just appear: Do Quang Em, Nguyen Trung, Nguyen Phuoc among the olders, but also Do Phan, Nguyen Tanh Binh, Tran Van Thao or Dinh Y Nhi etc. All testify for the vitality in the vietnamese creativity. In spite of decades during which the country had to face adversity, this creativity has reached to conquest its identity and has imposed its presence on the international scene.

 

About the book

With more than 400 reproductions, of which 300 are colored, this book offers for the first time a widened vision of the Vietnamese painting, analyzing it in its historical and artistic context. It also renews completely its approach. A reference that include a detailed biography of more than 60 artists, written by one of the best specialists, it is a tool to discover or increase your knowledge about this issue and the Vietnamese culture.