What's special about the exhibition of the French artist who loves Vietnam so much?

The origin and return, especially the echoes of Hang Trong folk paintings, are always present in the works of French artist Mathilde Granveau - who admits to loving Vietnam very much.

Although born and raised in France, artist Mathilde Granveau now prefers to live and work in Vietnam. For nearly 2 years at her small house in Da Nang , she has been diligently creating to select the 20 best paintings, which will be launched on the afternoon of November 15 (until November 24) at Maii Art Gallery (72/7 Tran Quoc Toan, Xuan Hoa Ward, Ho Chi Minh City), after exhibitions in France, Spain, Turkey and Laos.

Blossoms by French artist Mathilde Granveau

Photo: Phan Trong Van

The Vibration

Photo: Phan Trong Van

Nomad Works

Photo: Phan Trong Van

With Roots - traces of origin , Mathilde opens up a space of contemplative and profound art.

The exhibition, titled Roots - traces of origin , can be seen as a place where the body and memory are reconstructed through a symbolic and restrained visual language. Not aiming to depict reality or express emotions directly, Mathilde chose to simplify the body to the boundary of symbols, to open up a contemplative and profound artistic space.

The artist calls this exhibition the first breath of her new works. "A quiet unveiling of an inner journey that takes shape through color, geometry and rhythm," she shared.

Since settling in Vietnam, the artist's artistic journey has developed through a constant dialogue between motifs, symbols and the tranquil energy of the beautiful S-shaped country.

Artist Mathilde Granveau

Photo: NVCC

Mathilde’s works do not attempt to “tell” a story, but rather let the story emerge as the viewer stops and looks. The empty spaces – the reduced body parts – are where memories speak. The silence in the paintings is therefore part of language.

Always mindful of her roots and her return, when viewing Mathilde Granveau's paintings, viewers will realize that the asymmetrical composition that the artist uses is influenced by Vietnamese folk decoration and the liberal spirit in Hang Trong folk paintings, where the image and background are organized intuitively rather than following geometric symmetry.

The artist's paintings are influenced by Vietnamese folk decoration and the liberal spirit of Hang Trong folk paintings.

Photo: Phan Trong Van

It is this "intentional deviation" that creates an open visual state, so that the viewer is not led, but must find it for himself.

"Mathilde's works do not try to 'tell' a story, but let the story emerge as the viewer stops and looks. The empty spaces - the simplified body parts - are where memories speak. The silence in the paintings, therefore, is part of the language. The earthy yellow tones are not wet and sad like in Europe, but dry, rough, warm, close to the breath of the Central region. The metallic light in the paintings is not jewelry, but the light of a silence that numbs the soul", curator Phan Trong Van.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/co-gi-dac-biet-trong-trien-lam-cua-hoa-si-phap-rat-yeu-viet-nam-185251113114132577.htm