Masterpieces made from seashells

Using seashells washed ashore, Vo Cao Dinh (40 years old, residing in Tam Tien commune, Nui Thanh district, Quang Nam province) has created unique and highly artistic paintings from the shells of seashells that wash ashore. His works not only decorate his shop in Loc Ha village but also earn him tens of millions of dong from this creative idea.

These days, whenever he has free time at the cafe, Mr. Dinh tinkers with his paintings made from scallop shells. In the cafe's space, he displays hundreds of unique works, mainly created from snail shells, clam shells, and some old bottles. This is the result of more than five years of his passion for this craft: making paintings from shells.

Mr. Vo Cao Dinh is meticulous with every step in creating paintings from seashells.

Having never studied painting or architecture, Mr. Dinh came to this work purely by chance. More than five years ago, while strolling along the beach near his home with his daughter, he discovered many seashells with beautiful shapes and colors, so he collected them and brought them home. Later, he tried gluing them together to create fun toys for his daughter.

The shells of snails and clams are carefully processed before being used in the mosaic artwork.

“One item, then two… I indulged my daughter like that, unintentionally creating many objects from seashells. Gradually, I came up with the idea of ​​making larger paintings to decorate the cafe. Thinking it over, I came up with an idea and started experimenting with piles of various seashells. The paintings hung in the cafe, and many customers, seeing how beautiful they were, started asking to buy them,” Mr. Dinh said.

Hundreds of artworks are on display at Thien Dinh Cafe.

After collecting seashells from the beach, he washes them thoroughly and dries them. During the cleaning process, he meticulously ensures that the natural colors and patterns are preserved. Once the materials are carefully processed, he begins assembling them into a complete artwork.

The vase, made from snails and seashells, took Mr. Dinh nearly a week to create.

He explained that completing a product from seashells isn't difficult, but it requires meticulous attention to detail, along with time and patience. Once he has a mental image of the animal or object and the right materials, he can work very quickly. However, for larger paintings with more intricate details, completion can sometimes take a considerable amount of time.

A vibrant depiction of nature made from seashells, clams, and coral.

“For simple animals like chickens, elephants, and buffaloes, it’s very quick, about 30 minutes to complete a product. However, for paintings with more complex details, such as portraits or landscapes, it’s much more elaborate, sometimes taking more than a week to complete. The most difficult part is choosing the right seashells in terms of color and size to highlight the details in the painting,” Mr. Dinh shared.

A bouquet of colorful and vibrant snails.

According to Mr. Dinh, to create a beautiful product, meticulous attention to detail is necessary in every step of the process.

Introducing us to the dragon on the shelf, he said the mascot is about 40cm long and was made last year using hundreds of seashells and snails of various kinds. Many of the shells were purchased by friends in Nha Trang and sent to him. Creating this mascot took many days and required a very high level of meticulousness.

The dragon was made from hundreds of seashells.

"This is one of the largest animal sculptures in the collection, taking over a week to complete. The shells are all the same size and meticulously processed, so when assembled, they create fairly uniform scales. In the future, I plan to make all 12 zodiac animals and display them at my cafe," he said excitedly.

A painting of seahorses.

For example, the vibrant snail-shaped bouquet painting on the other wall took him nearly half a month to complete. Most of his time was spent selecting the right materials in terms of color and size. According to Mr. Dinh, the challenge was ensuring each flower had its own unique beauty, yet when combined, they formed a lively bouquet.

The painting of the girl is decorated with seashells.

Speaking about his future plans, Mr. Dinh hopes to open a mini-museum to serve tourists who want to take photos and sell the products he makes. Currently, his paintings made from seashells have become well-known and are ordered by many people, with 4-10 paintings per month. Depending on the size and complexity, the price can range from a few hundred thousand to over one million dong per product.

Mr. Dinh wants to open a mini-museum to display exhibits for tourists.

“Thanks to the development of tourism , many visitors have recently come to the coastal area of ​​Nui Thanh, and I want to bring them a new experience. The paintings and cute animal sculptures not only have aesthetic value, but they also serve as a gift, a souvenir from my hometown. Moreover, through my work, I want to convey the message to everyone to work together to protect the environment starting from the smallest things,” Mr. Dinh further shared.

Interesting things about the flooded village of Lang Cui.

Source: https://baodantoc.vn/nhung-sieu-pham-tu-vo-oc-1742784631275.htm