Teacher Vo Thi Quynh with her work

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In the exhibitions of the Hue City Fine Arts Association, the pressed flower paintings by retired teacher Vo Thi Quynh always appear in a humble but attractive corner. Gentle, graceful, peaceful are the feelings of many people when viewing Ms. Quynh's pressed flower paintings. Each painting is a daily story, the joys and sorrows are expressed through the colors of flowers and leaves. Each work is a harmonious combination of poetry, painting and sculpture.

In each work, the author always conveys his love for his homeland, family, and friends; expressing a youthful soul with overflowing emotions about the surrounding life, dreams, and memories. Many works express familiar themes, such as: “Hue Garden”, “Hometown”, “Spring Returns”, “Shadow of Dreams”…

In the work “Desert and Dreams of Love”, teacher Vo Thi Quynh expressed her dream of setting foot on new lands, where there are beautiful leaves and flowers. The author expressed this dream through leaves from Japan and Canada brought back as gifts by her friends and students.

The painting “Shadow of Dreams” depicts a father sitting in front of a mandolin with the hope that his children will become musicians. The painting evokes memories of the author’s father, even though he has passed away. “In the past, my father often talked about his dream that his children would become musicians. Years have passed, and none of us have followed our father’s dream, but I still remember it,” said Ms. Quynh.

The founder of pressed flower and leaf paintings

As a former literature teacher at Quoc Hoc High School for the Gifted - Hue, the path to art came to teacher Vo Thi Quynh as an arrangement. From the simple idea of ​​making pressed flower and leaf cards to give to teachers and friends, in 1992, after a serious illness, Ms. Quynh felt she had to do something more meaningful to leave behind for life. That year, the pressed flower and leaf petals that had been kept for a long time were used by her to make a painting of a rooster welcoming the Year of the Rooster. Looking at the beautiful painting, family and friends all praised and encouraged Ms. Quynh to continue creating.

In 1993, Ms. Quynh's first exhibition of pressed flower and leaf paintings took place in Da Nang. Since then, she has organized many exhibitions in Hue, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Quang Tri. To date, Ms. Quynh has more than 300 works using this material and has been honored by the Hue City Fine Arts Association as the founder of the first pressed flower and leaf painting genre in Vietnam.

Walking on the streets of Hue or wherever she goes, Ms. Quynh always pays attention to finding flowers and picking leaves. Not only does she collect every petal and leaf from everywhere to press and preserve, but every time an idea comes to her, regardless of space or time, Ms. Quynh picks up a pen to sketch on paper and then meticulously selects suitable flowers and leaves. To ensure durability, each flower and leaf takes 100 days to press and dry, and the colors of the painting are completely natural. Ms. Quynh researches the techniques herself and accumulates experience to preserve and maintain the colors of her works.

To create pressed flower and leaf paintings, in addition to ideas and creativity, the author must have a strong passion to be patient and meticulous enough to assemble each petal and leaf. Unlike other materials, paintings made of pressed flowers and leaves must be done meticulously, and cannot be done quickly. Just a small mistake and the painting will be damaged and cannot be repaired. Creative inspiration can come suddenly, but to create a complete work is not a simple matter. Sometimes, having an idea and sketching but not finding the right flower and leaf shape, the painting must wait for months, even years. In return, pressed flower and leaf paintings bring Ms. Quynh to moments of sublimation with art, helping her to always keep her soul young.

Minh Hien