Vietnamese creativity on show at D Gallery
Self portrait - the artists blinded by his tools.
It’s an oddity of the art world that Thai painters, living in a democratic country where there are very few constraints on expression, seem overwhelmingly stuck in a rut of tried-and-true topics – the Royal Family, Buddhism and rural life. There is plenty of beautifully executed art, but one does wish that more Thai artists would step outside of this envelope more often.
Yet in nearby Vietnam, with its “we’ll tell you how to think” Communist government, there is an ongoing blossoming of very high quality art covering every topic under the sun – apart, perhaps, from discontent with the rulers.
Affinity for fish - one of the nine pieces that make up 'Prayer'.
Fine examples of this high quality art comes from Nguyen Tan Cuong, whose work is now on show at D Gallery in the Royal Phuket Marina, with the collective title “Day Night & Day”.
Nguyen was born in Ho Chi Minh city in 1953, which presumably means that his life was fairly turbulent. This is ignored in the official biography, which mentions only that graduated from Saigon Fine Arts College in 1973, just two years before Saigon fell to the Communist onslaught. It also lists 35 group and solo exhibitions of his work, not only in Vietnam but also in Canada, the US, Italy, Korea and the Philippines.
Works by him hang in collections in the Vietnam National Art Museum, the Ho Chi Minh City Art Museum and in a museum in northern Italy. He is also the winner of eight art prizes in Vietnam. So he’s no slouch at painting.
The artist with D Gallery co-owner Pornthip Raksapiksu and his largest work in the show, 'Memory'. which is made up of 64 panels.
The 20 or so pieces on view at D Gallery range from figurative work to abstract, and from oil on canvas to mixed media, including paint brushes, rags, canvas tool bags and wire brushes. He also appears to have a particular affinity for fish, which appear in many of his works.
Many of the pieces consist of multiple related images – as many as 64 in the case of the largest work on show, Memory, which evokes memories of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, but with dolls replacing the angels – or demons.
Meeting him, Nguyen comes across as courteous, cheerful and, let’s say, totally normal. But some of his self-portraits hint at darker depths in his psyche. While his real face is round and pink, he portrays himself as long-faced, skinny and in grey and brown tones. In one mixed-media montage he is apparently blinded by rags and paintbrushes.
Nguyen’s works are built up in painstaking layers, with the result that many appear to glow from within. This is a a consummate artist at the height of his powers. Go and see the exhibition. If you’re thinking of buying, take a fat wallet. Prices range from tens of thousands of baht up to half a million.
