Glass painting - the beauty of folk culture

More than 70 paintings on glass, from 1920, by Vietnamese, Chinese, Khmer, exhibited at the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts.

The exhibition displays themes of Southern paintings, Hue, Chinese and Khmer communities, or themes of worship, decoration and religion.

In the theme of Chinese glass paintings in Vietnam, the most prominent are works about worship, dating from the 1920s. Below the paintings is a model recreating the worshiping room of the Chinese in the South.

Glass painting appeared in Vietnam in the 19th century, spread by Chinese immigrants, and appeared in the Hue royal court during the reign of King Minh Mang. In the early 20th century, this painting genre was present in many regions of the country. Over a century of development, this art form has formed many famous painting genres with distinct styles and characteristics such as Cho Lon (Saigon), Lai Thieu (Binh Duong), and Khmer.

In the exhibition, the oldest work is a Chinese painting of Guanyin Bodhisattva painted in 1920. The owner of the collection said that this artifact originated from a temple on Nguyen Thai Binh Street, District 1.

Most of the Chinese glass paintings in the exhibition depict themes of gods in folk beliefs such as Quan Thanh De Quan, Thien Hau Thanh Mau, Hue Quang Dai De, Cuu Thien Huyen Nu, the four friends (apricot, orchid, cuc truc), the four seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter), and ancient plays, dating back more than half a century.

Two paintings of the Three Kingdoms period, "Xu Chu naked fighting Ma Chao" and "Grand Preceptor Dong disturbing the Phoenix Court", by Tan Hue glass painting shop - once famous in Cho Lon.

Folk glass painting decorating a Chinese noodle cart in the 1960s.

Four Southern folk paintings with the theme of Four Walls (Wealth - Dust - Wine - Beauty) painted in 1980.

The four bad habits are a folk joke: alcohol, sex, money, and anger. The full saying is "Alcohol, sex, money, and anger". This is a Sino-Vietnamese word describing bad habits that destroy homes and families, equivalent to: Gambling, drinking, womanizing, and drug use.

Southern paintings are combined into a large work with the theme of nature, the outermost are two parallel sentences.

The Hue glass paintings on display at the exhibition are mostly new works - painted in the past few years.

The Khmer ethnic glass paintings in the exhibition mainly originated from Tra Vinh and Soc Trang provinces. The Khmer people adopted the glass painting technique somewhat later than the Vietnamese. The paintings often depict themes of Southern Buddhism, family, and exorcism.

Giang Tuyet Nhi, 22 years old, a visitor, said: "I often see glass paintings in temples, Chinese families, and noodle carts. Now seeing the exhibition, I know that the Khmer also have their own style of painting."

A 1993 Khmer painting. The painting is typically a pre-painted image of a woman or man in traditional clothing but without a face on glass. When someone commissions a portrait, the artist adds a face to the existing painting.

The exhibition also recreates the worship space of the Vietnamese people in the South with glass paintings, parallel sentences, and horizontal lacquered boards hanging on the wall. Worship objects such as incense burners, vases, and cabinets are all about half a century old.