Vietnamese cultural weavers

The traditional Vietnamese áo nhật bình dress, iconic plays from a bygone era like San Hậu, Sân khấu về khuya, Lá sầu riêng, the áo dài, and conical hats... are endless sources of inspiration for Linh Lương and Đào Minh Tú's 100 Threads of Vietnam painting series.

San Hau and the Drum of Me Linh

This collection of paintings captures 100 personal impressions of Vietnamese culture.

Starting from self-reflection on her understanding of her home country's culture during her time studying abroad, artist Linh Luong, along with her student Dao Minh Tu, decided to undertake the 100 Threads of Vietnam illustration project with the desire to explore and improve her knowledge and spread Vietnamese cultural values ​​to more people.

What do I know about Vietnamese culture?

In her interactions with international friends, when introducing Vietnam, Linh Luong instinctively mentions the ao dai (traditional Vietnamese dress), conical hat, cuisine , scenery, or sometimes even the art of water puppetry.

"I realized I didn't really know much about my country's culture yet, because there are so many other wonderful things I need to share and spread. So I decided to start researching and brainstorming ideas for each painting last August."

100 Threads of Vietnam chooses to express itself through personal impressions.

For Linh Luong, the painting of votive paper is a childhood memory: "Every Tet holiday, the children were usually assigned the task of burning votive paper and incense, so I'm impressed by the color and movement of the flame from that."

Or, for example, the painting "Dan Day" (a type of Vietnamese stringed instrument) is an impression of a purely Vietnamese musical instrument, which Linh only learned about thanks to this project. The painting "Doi Chopsticks" (a pair of chopsticks) depicts the impression of young children as they begin to learn to eat with chopsticks.

"For the painting of the Ao Dai, I drew two invisible Ao Dai dresses so that if international friends ask, I can say that when you come to Vietnam, you will see Ao Dai everywhere you go, so I didn't include them in the painting," Linh said.

By choosing to create a series of paintings based on personal impressions, Linh hopes to share her own experiences and thoughts about culture.

According to him, this approach gives the paintings a unique character while also creating more challenges for the artist: "With the 'To He' painting, instead of just depicting familiar 'To He' figures, I focused on showcasing the hands of the artisans. Because, from my childhood, I remember seeing the hands of the artisans moving so nimbly, like they were dancing."

Dan De (a type of Vietnamese stringed instrument) and Blackening of Teeth

Telling cultural stories through art projects.

In 100 Threads of Vietnam , there are 10 paintings dedicated to illustrating typical plays of Southern Vietnamese theater such as San Hau, The Late Night Theater, The Durian Leaf, Half a Lifetime of Fragrance and Powder ...

Linh based his work on research he gathered while creating a book on this topic. He also drew inspiration from the "Drama and Art" program, particularly a quote from the artists: "I wonder if anyone will remember the senior artists in the future..."

Ao Dai and Da Co Hoai Lang

"I previously spent nearly four years researching, illustrating, and publishing a book about water puppetry. Only after finishing the book did I realize that it took that much time to research and illustrate water puppetry relatively thoroughly. So how can an artist create something on a Vietnamese cultural theme in just one or two weeks?"

"That thought helped me realize that creating resources and a knowledge system through my art projects is the greatest contribution I can make to Vietnamese culture," Linh explained.

Referencing source materials also helps artists strike a balance between creativity and informational accuracy.

"For example, with the painting 'Ao Nhat Binh,' after researching and learning that each pattern on the robe represents a specific rank or character, I had to adjust the patterns on the robe, and at the same time, note in the painting's introduction that this ensured it didn't resemble any specific character while still preserving the artistic concept."

Late Night Stage and Durian Leaves

To He and Chopsticks

Paper offerings and traditional Vietnamese robes

The poem about the saddle and the half-life of fragrance and powder.

Linh Luong is a freelance artist in Saigon who has published the book " Telling Stories on the Water ," which recounts the journey of Vietnamese people's association with water puppetry over the past nearly 1,000 years. He is also a co-founder of the "From Ear to Eye" project , a pioneering project supporting visually impaired people in watching plays live on stage.

Linh said he plans to hold an exhibition and publish a bilingual book for the 100 Threads of Vietnam project : "My long-term goal is to turn this book into a mobile application. Based on my initial experience with the project, I want to provide international students with the most convenient application possible to introduce the country's culture to their international friends."

Ho Lam

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nhung-nguoi-det-van-hoa-viet-20250821092836292.htm