Vietnamese master painter Tran Van Can has been honoured for his contribution to the development of modern fine arts, to commemorate his 100th birth anniversary.

Vietnamese painters and art lovers gathered at a commemoration ceremony on August 3, organised by the Vietnam Fine Arts Association.   
      
"The commemoration is in gratitude to the famous painter, who made a great contribution to the country's fine arts," said the head of the Party Central Committee's Publicity and Education Commission, To Huy Rua.   
      
Vietnam Fine Arts Association chairman Tran Khanh Chuong said "Tran Van Can is the pride of Vietnamese fine arts."   
      
Born in the   northern province   of Bac Ninh in 1910, Can studied art at the Ecole des Beaux Arts de Indochine from 1931-37, where he was heavily influenced by college founder Joseph Inguimberty.   
      
Can achieved "most excellent student", became a lecturer at the college and then headmaster from 1954-64.His greatest contribution to Vietnamese modern painting was in lacquer.   
      
With more than 50-year experience, he created numerous art works, which depict the diverse reality of the national battle for independence as well as the country's development process.   
      
His highly acclaimed works include Em Thuy (Little Thuy), Goi Dau (Hair Washing), Cuu Nong Dan (Save the Farmers), Tru Giac Doi (Hunger Elimination), Cay Lua (Rice Transplanting), Nu Dan Quan Mien Bac ( Northern Militiawoman ).   
      
Paintings not displayed at the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum are sought for domestic and foreign private collections.   

Together with some other talented painters of his generation such as Nguyen Gia Tri, To Ngoc Van, Nguyen Phan Chanh, Nguyen Do Cung, Nguyen Sang, Nguyen Tu Nghiem, Bui Xuan Phai, Can helped set up the foundation for Vietnamese modern fine arts.   
      
Thanks to his contribution to Vietnamese fine arts, the    Government awarded him the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Arts, and the Independence Order. He was made People's Teacher and member of the Arts Academy of the German Democratic Republic.   
      
He was General Secretary of the Vietnamese Fine Arts Association from 1958-83, and president of the Vietnamese Association of Graphic Arts from 1983-89.   
      
A newly built road in the city's Tu Liem district will be named after Tran Van Can./.