Vietnam Fine Arts Museum is showing a collection of watercolour sketchesto mark the 105th birth anniversary of master artist Tran Van Can(1910-2015).
The exhibition features 80 watercolour sketchesselected from the museum's own collection. These include Tran Van Can'spaintings on four themes — portraits, landscapes, productive labour, andnational defence – which he did during his trips to various parts ofVietnam between 1955 and 1979.
"I'm very moved because theexhibition is like a video recording of our life together. It's full ofmy husband's memories," said Tran Thi Hong, the artist's wife. "Theexhibition is very nice and gives a chance to the public to see theartist's works, which he himself would have presented if he was alive."
Viewing her husband's artworks during an early visit to the exhibition, Tran Thi Hong could not hold back her tears.
Thesketch entitled Chau Voi Di (Little Girl and Aunt) is a portrait of theartist's wife. Can was inspired by a picture of his wife playing with ababy and had asked her to hold the pose so he could draw them.
"Itwas noontime in 1974, I was asked to look after our neighbour's babyfor some time, and while I was playing with the baby, my husband told methat we looked nice, and he sketched us quickly," Hong recalled.
Can'sother portraits include that of President Ho Chi Minh, Hero Nup, andmany other ordinary people. His watercolour sketches represent only asmall part of Tran Van Can's lifetime output, but they have a uniquestyle as they have subtle, light, and simple colours.
Viewers areoffered a rich overview of the artist's preliminary work on many of hisgreatest works later, including his celebrated oil painting Nu Dan QuanMien Bien (Coastal Militia Woman), 1960; his magnificent lacquerpainting Tat Nuoc Dong Chiem (Watering The Rice Field), 1958; his 1957oil painting Noi Lai Day Gau (Reconnecting The Bucket's Rope), as wellas his lacquer painting Dan Len (Knitting), 1959-1961.
"All theartworks convey the artist's deep feelings and sentiments towardspeople, landscapes, and their ways of life that he encountered duringhis travels," said fine arts critic Nguyen Hai Yen.
Artist Canwas a 7th generation member of Indochina Fine Arts School. He devotedhis life and career to art in his cherished homeland.
Togetherwith some other talented painters of his generation such as Nguyen GiaTri, To Ngoc Van, and Nguyen Tuong Lan, Can helped set up a foundationfor Vietnamese modern fine arts.
He was General Secretary of theVietnamese Fine Arts Association in 1958-83 and Chairman of the VietnamFine Arts Association in 1983-89.
His efforts were rewarded withmany awards and accolades, including the Independence Order and the HoChi Minh Prize for literature and arts in 1996. In 2010, a street inHanoi's Tu Liem district was named after him.
In 2013, his oilpainting Em Thuy (Little Thuy) was declared a national treasure by PrimeMinister Nguyen Tan Dung through a decision.
The exhibition will run until the end of June at 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc.-VNA
The exhibition features 80 watercolour sketchesselected from the museum's own collection. These include Tran Van Can'spaintings on four themes — portraits, landscapes, productive labour, andnational defence – which he did during his trips to various parts ofVietnam between 1955 and 1979.
"I'm very moved because theexhibition is like a video recording of our life together. It's full ofmy husband's memories," said Tran Thi Hong, the artist's wife. "Theexhibition is very nice and gives a chance to the public to see theartist's works, which he himself would have presented if he was alive."
Viewing her husband's artworks during an early visit to the exhibition, Tran Thi Hong could not hold back her tears.
Thesketch entitled Chau Voi Di (Little Girl and Aunt) is a portrait of theartist's wife. Can was inspired by a picture of his wife playing with ababy and had asked her to hold the pose so he could draw them.
"Itwas noontime in 1974, I was asked to look after our neighbour's babyfor some time, and while I was playing with the baby, my husband told methat we looked nice, and he sketched us quickly," Hong recalled.
Can'sother portraits include that of President Ho Chi Minh, Hero Nup, andmany other ordinary people. His watercolour sketches represent only asmall part of Tran Van Can's lifetime output, but they have a uniquestyle as they have subtle, light, and simple colours.
Viewers areoffered a rich overview of the artist's preliminary work on many of hisgreatest works later, including his celebrated oil painting Nu Dan QuanMien Bien (Coastal Militia Woman), 1960; his magnificent lacquerpainting Tat Nuoc Dong Chiem (Watering The Rice Field), 1958; his 1957oil painting Noi Lai Day Gau (Reconnecting The Bucket's Rope), as wellas his lacquer painting Dan Len (Knitting), 1959-1961.
"All theartworks convey the artist's deep feelings and sentiments towardspeople, landscapes, and their ways of life that he encountered duringhis travels," said fine arts critic Nguyen Hai Yen.
Artist Canwas a 7th generation member of Indochina Fine Arts School. He devotedhis life and career to art in his cherished homeland.
Togetherwith some other talented painters of his generation such as Nguyen GiaTri, To Ngoc Van, and Nguyen Tuong Lan, Can helped set up a foundationfor Vietnamese modern fine arts.
He was General Secretary of theVietnamese Fine Arts Association in 1958-83 and Chairman of the VietnamFine Arts Association in 1983-89.
His efforts were rewarded withmany awards and accolades, including the Independence Order and the HoChi Minh Prize for literature and arts in 1996. In 2010, a street inHanoi's Tu Liem district was named after him.
In 2013, his oilpainting Em Thuy (Little Thuy) was declared a national treasure by PrimeMinister Nguyen Tan Dung through a decision.
The exhibition will run until the end of June at 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc.-VNA
