Portraits of President Ho Chi Minh, General Vo Nguyen Giap, and General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made of agarwood.

Bracelets, jewelry, handicrafts, and incense are all too common, but have you ever heard of agarwood paintings?

A portrait of President Ho Chi Minh – Photo: LE TRUNG

Le Ngoc Duc (30 years old, owner of Duc Hoc Tram workshop, Tam Ky City, Quang Nam ) and his associates have breathed life into lifeless pieces of agarwood, transforming them into unique and fascinating works of art. Many will surely be amazed by them.

Unique agarwood paintings by a young artist from Quang Nam province.

Having been passionately involved with agarwood for nearly ten years, and having opened an agarwood business three years ago, Duc mainly produces and sells products such as bracelets, incense sticks, and agarwood cones.

However, he was troubled by the thought that those products were soulless. While what he wanted was for an artistic message to emanate from this rare material.

"The idea suddenly struck me: why don't we create a work that imbues itself with soul and possesses unique artistic value?" he pondered.

So, a… game begins. “The project started in 2023; I was just passionate about it and wanted to develop this idea. I was looking for people who were truly talented in painting, fine arts, and especially passionate about it.”

"The workshop started operating in early 2024 and launched agarwood paintings onto the market," Duc recounted. Only after getting involved did he realize how time-consuming it is to create an agarwood painting. The first step is selecting agarwood pieces (thin, bark-like material) with a variety of shades, dividing them into different color tones.

To create the desired artwork, sketch the image with a pencil on paper. Then, tear and paste small pieces of agarwood of varying sizes and shades using colorless, odorless glue to form a complete, soulful, and profound painting.

Portrait of General Vo Nguyen Giap – Photo: LE TRUNG

The subject matter of the paintings at Duc's workshop is quite diverse, catering to customer needs, with themes related to historical and cultural values. These include portraits of national leaders and heroes, and historical events.

Portrait painting is the most difficult, because capturing the soul and authenticity of the subject requires the artist to have depth and to bring out the essence of the person they are portraying. A single portrait can take ten days to half a month to complete.

Only by seeing and touching each painting firsthand can one truly understand that, in addition to their love for the craft and aesthetic sense, these young men in the workshop also possess a deep admiration and respect for historical figures whose impact on life and this country is irreplaceable.

Germany stands beside a portrait of the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong – Photo: LE TRUNG

Those were President Ho Chi Minh, General Vo Nguyen Giap, and General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

The sight is stunning, like a portrait—intimate yet incredibly vivid, the subject has been "transformed" as if their life had been dedicated to the nation. Besides that, Duc's workshop also creates landscape paintings and zodiac animal paintings to serve the market, especially during Tet (Lunar New Year).

The effort isn't over yet…

Duc said that people find his artworks very interesting when he posts them on social media. The unique and special feature of agarwood paintings compared to other types of paintings is that, in addition to their artistic value and beauty, agarwood paintings have a value that almost no other type of painting possesses: feng shui.

The invigorating aroma of agarwood is enjoyed by many, especially middle-aged customers.

Painting of a sailboat – Photo: LE TRUNG

A typical agarwood painting costs around 3-5 million VND. Those requiring high skill, significant artistic value, and significant time and effort can cost 10-20 million VND. In the future, besides developing his agarwood paintings, Duc will also create 3D miniature landscapes and countryside scenes featuring agarwood.

On average, the workshop produces about 20 artworks per month, with 4 workers, each producing 4-5 pieces. The workshop sells 10 paintings each month, sourcing its agarwood raw materials carefully from various provinces and cities.

"This is the first agarwood painting product in the country. When hung, combined with the light from lamps, the temperature of the light enhances the fragrance and creates a more shimmering effect," he said.

Dragon painting – Photo: LE TRUNG

Chau Tung Duong (35 years old, an associate of Duc) said that completing an agarwood painting is more difficult than other types of paintings because there are only three color tones: dark, medium, and light. Creating a work with depth is usually more difficult than painting, requiring skillful and subtle arrangement.

On average, it takes 5-6 days to complete a painting, from selecting the materials to arranging the composition appropriately. "The unique feature of agarwood paintings is that the agarwood has natural oil veins, arranged to express the depth and soul of the artwork," Mr. Duong shared.

Creativity knows no bounds. Quang Nam is on the map of agarwood. Young artisans like Duc have pioneered a new way of doing business.

Perhaps a new opportunity has arisen, but more importantly, when simple things are elevated to art, when consumer habits are broken to create differentiation in use and innovation, then it is a magnificent game.

Meticulous attention to detail in every line – Photo: LE TRUNG

Duc's associates at the painting workshop – Photo: LE TRUNG

Duc at the painting workshop – Photo: LE TRUNG

Paintings of the 12 zodiac animals – Photo: LE TRUNG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chan-dung-bac-ho-dai-tuong-vo-nguyen-giap-tong-bi-thu-nguyen-phu-trong-bang-tram-huong-20250110131853393.htm