Vivid reality in contemporary Vietnamese painting

Although blending into the flow of contemporary art, artists creating realistic paintings still maintain their own path, bringing liveliness through each idea, color and material.

The work "Paradise" by Nguyen Van Chung attracts the attention of the viewing public.

The exhibition "Reality +" recently held at the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum introduced to the public nearly 50 paintings by artists of the Realism group including: Pham Binh Chuong, Nguyen Toan, Le The Anh, Nguyen Van Bay, Doan Van Toi, Luu Tuyen, Le Cu Thuan and Vu Ngoc Vinh; with the participation of several other authors such as Trinh Lu, Ho Hung and Nguyen Van Chung.

Awakening the vitality of all things

Each work displayed at the “Reality +” Exhibition bears the personal mark and creative style of the artists. From landscapes, nature, to human images, they are all depicted vividly and realistically, even surrealistically.

The more you paint the simple things in everyday life with sincere love, the more pure the beauty is expressed. The painter is the one who knows how to evoke life from still life, so that each work is born from the crystallization of the exchange between the surrounding things and the spiritual world of the painter.

Painter Trinh Lu

Le Cu Thuan is faithful to the classical style of painting, placing himself in the lives of ethnic minorities. With the same theme, Le The Anh creates liveliness through bright colors, combined with contrasting tones to highlight the clear eyes and rosy cheeks of children in the highlands. Pham Binh Chuong focuses on the changes of urban life. Vu Ngoc Vinh still worries about the fate of modern women. Nguyen Van Chung touches the surreal world with "Paradise".

In another space of the exhibition, Doan Van Toi continues to exploit the theme of Buddhism in a more familiar and youthful form than before. Nguyen Toan's writing style is increasingly refined in terms of form, color and meaning. Nguyen Van Bay returns to the corner of the pond in his hometown as if to find peace in his soul.

Painting people, fruits and flowers, Trinh Lu's paintings are still full of emotions. Luu Tuyen steps out of the shell of his inner self to reach "Perfect Paradise", accepting the obviousness and finiteness of human life through the cracks on the surface of the objects he depicts.

The work "Late Autumn Street Corner" by Pham Binh Chuong.

The core of realism painting is to depict life. However, if it only stopped at dry imitation or copying, this school would not have such a strong vitality in painting. Sometimes, reality is just an excuse for artists to explore their own inner world through the reflection of things and events put into paintings.

Painter Trinh Lu said: “The more you paint simple things in everyday life with sincere love, the more pure the beauty is expressed. Painters are those who know how to evoke life from still life, so that each work is born from the crystallization of the exchange between the surrounding things and the spiritual world of the painter.”

Comparing reality in painting and photography

For a long time, the difference in the way of reflecting reality between painting and photography has been a hotly debated topic among art critics in Vietnam and around the world. Since the invention of the camera, many people have assumed that it has done all the work of the painter.

Immediately, famous artists discovered photorealism and hyperrealism in fine arts as a response to prove that if copied, painting can be more detailed and emotional than photography.

The function of photography is to record images seen by the naked eye through devices and machines. However, the reality in painting is recreated by the meticulousness of hands with brushes and paints.

Painter Pham Binh Chuong commented: “Photography is a combination of light, shutter, reflection… and through physical impact to capture the moment. Even if there is an arrangement, everything is still contained in the moment of pressing the shutter. Painting is different, each stroke put into the painting is edited and distilled by the artist. All the good and bad things of them are clearly revealed in the painting. Therefore, with the same subject, it is difficult to guess the author when taking a photo, but it is much easier when painting.”

Exchange session with the audience on the sidelines of the "Reality +" exhibition of the artists.

Sharing more about his journey of pursuing realistic paintings, Pham Binh Chuong recalled that before focusing on urban themes, he tried his hand at abstract, expressionist and contemporary folk art. He came to this art school by chance and has been attached to it for over 20 years. Chuong's paintings often focus on narrow angles, projecting his gaze to observe in detail the changes of everyday life.

In terms of practical skills, realism requires the painter to be proficient in simulating external objects, to be able to observe the movements of light and dark, to be good at capturing shapes and sketching compositions. And the painter is the one who tells the story through the vivid realities in the paintings using a colorful language: the language of images.

Answering the question “Why paint realistically?” during a discussion on the sidelines of the “Reality +” exhibition, artist Pham Binh Chuong revealed that many people choose to paint realistically simply because it is their nature. They see reality as a means to express their own perspective and artistic personality.

Painter Trinh Lu said: “There are thousands of reasons and styles for making art. Every reason is valid. But any painting is self-portrait. Seeking the difference is not necessarily the truth of art. On the contrary, art is simply a journey to discover the reality inside each person.”

NGOC KHANH

Source: https://nhandan.vn/hien-thuc-sinh-dong-trong-hoi-hoa-duong-dai-viet-nam-post785292.html