Two new faces introduced at Nha Lam Art include artist Thanh Tung with the art of enamel crafting, painter My Linh with large-scale woodcut paintings, and a group with Vi Cu Viet Nhan with ceramic products and handmade statues simulating Vietnamese artifacts and historical figures.
The fair takes place before the spring of At Ty 2025, is an opportunity for visitors to admire handicraft products that combine historical and contemporary themes to highlight family ties during the New Year, even though some arts have been lost and are being restored and recreated with admirable efforts, such as the enamel art that Mr. Thanh Tung is pursuing.
Mr. Thanh Tung and artist My Linh at the opening ceremony of the art fair Nha La Noi on the evening of January 16.
Enamel art has existed since the early 19th century (during the reign of King Minh Mang), but was lost due to war. As a novice learner with no background in painting, Mr. Thanh Tung encountered many difficulties when choosing to recreate this unique carving art to introduce to the audience a form that is rare in Vietnam but highly applicable. According to Mr. Tung, currently in Vietnam, besides Hue, if you want to learn about enamel, there are places such as Ho Chi Minh City, An Giang or some places in Hanoi. At the fair, he displayed some unique works that clearly showed the enamel technique. According to him, this art is difficult but can be applied to crafting handicrafts, jewelry, and furniture; he personally likes and finds it easy to combine enamel art with wood.
Display cabinet of handmade models of artifacts and historical figures of the Vi Cu Viet Nhan group
As for artist My Linh, this is the first time her large-format woodcuts have been introduced at Nha Lam - a genre of paintings with difficult techniques and requiring seriousness in the creation process. The paintings by the female artist on display are all large-format with delicate carvings, depicting many vivid forms of nature. The fair is an opportunity for artist My Linh to "show off" her talent and introduce to the public the art of woodcut printing and the characteristics of this genre in an open workshop on January 18.
The Vi Cu Viet Nhan group previously attracted attention with their hobby of collecting historical warrior models, bringing to the fair character models and dragon head models cast in ceramic, and bronze seals. These statues and artifacts are handcrafted, for example, warrior models are carefully referenced for historical and cultural background before being crafted, then details such as helmets and weapons are also based on historical descriptions to recreate.
In addition to the three main product lines including handicrafts made with/combined with enamel techniques, woodblock prints and warrior models, and historical artifacts, the fair is also a space for visitors to learn about and auction ancient ceramic works as well as watercolor paintings by artist Ho Hung.
Ancient pottery as well as Ho Hung's watercolor paintings have been introduced before. Uniquely, this time, there are 3 limited edition paintings by Ho Hung introduced including Noisy Countryside , Autumn Heop and Lying Listening to the Sea Sing .
Accept controversy to improve
The common point in the artists’ works of art and crafts is that the creations require durability. Ms. Nguyen Giang Xuan, founder of Nha Lam Art, realized that and shared that many players or connoisseurs can buy goods from abroad at very high prices, but Nha Lam chose these 3 cases to introduce to the public because each type of art itself has its own stories connecting history with the present, through which it touches the cultural traditions of Vietnamese people from the past to the present.
Mr. Thanh Tung demonstrates the technique of torching enamel at the opening ceremony of the exhibition.
Compared to oil paintings, woodcuts are more difficult to edit, the technique is demanding, and creativity requires perseverance. The same goes for enamel techniques, because as Mr. Thanh Tung acknowledges, if you want to learn this technique systematically, if possible, you should go abroad and invest in a set of tools to create this technique.
The Vi Cu Viet Nhan group knows that making historical models (spanning from the Ly - Tran to Nguyen dynasties) is not only difficult but can also lead to arguments about the correctness or incorrectness of history. "Arguments are for historical researchers, but our job is to make these models. We have to have the model first, then we will listen to suggestions to gradually perfect it," the group representative shared.
These young artists choose a narrow path to approach handicrafts and fine arts that require a lot of dedication and finance. As in the case of Mr. Thanh Tung, taking another job to "feed" his learning and developing enamel, but thanks to love, passion and diligence, their creations have their own attractive life.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vi-sao-nguoi-tre-chon-loi-di-hep-de-quang-ba-nghe-thuat-185250117140145044.htm
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