Painting of Hai Ba Trung on Swiss watch 'plagiarized' work of Vietnamese artist?

Swiss watchmaker Christophe Claret recently introduced a new collection called Legend, including a watch model with the image of Hai Ba Trung.

This collection was revealed by Christophe Claret in 2021, to honor famous historical figures in world history. Recently, images and specific information about the special watch were announced by the Swiss brand.

"Christophe Claret wants to pay homage to Hai Ba Trung - two Vietnamese national heroines in the 1st century - who fought off foreign invaders," reads the post introducing the Christophe Claret "Hai Ba Trung" on the brand's official fanpage.

In addition, the company also said that the painting of Hai Ba Trung used in the watch is the work of famous Swiss artist André Martinez.

Although Christophe Claret has not officially announced the price of this watch model. However, based on the price of manufacturing materials compared to models in the same collection, the estimated price of the design model is from 714,000 - 747,000 USD (more than 15 billion VND).

Most audiences were delighted when the Swiss watch company honored the image of a Vietnamese historical figure. However, many people commented that the design by artist André Martinez resembled two paintings: Hai Ba Trung and Thien ha thai binh, which were introduced by artist Xuan Lam in the second exhibition Redrawing folk paintings called Cuoc hoi gap xuan - nay, at the Vietnam Women's Museum at the end of 2019.

Painting of Hai Ba Trung on Swiss watch 'plagiarized' by Vietnamese artist? - 2 — The two works "Hai Ba Trung" and "Thien ha thai binh" were introduced by Xuan Lam in his solo exhibition at the end of 2019.

Talking to VTC News reporter, artist Nguyen The Son - Art curator, lecturer at Vietnam University of Fine Arts, confirmed that this drawing is by Xuan Lam. Commenting on his student, Mr. Son said: "This is a typical style that Xuan Lam has pursued for many years since graduating. Redrawing traditional paintings with modern coloring and shaping techniques, easy to approach for young people. Xuan Lam is also an artist followed by many young people, so it is not difficult to recognize the graphic language and brushwork in the works".

According to information from artist Nguyen The Son, artist Xuan Lam and his lawyer are contacting and working with the Swiss watch company Christophe Claret to find answers.

VTC News reporters contacted artist Xuan Lam, but he has not yet commented on this incident.

Xuan Lam was born in 1993, in Hanoi. In 2016, he graduated from the Vietnam University of Fine Arts and Graphic Design at FPT Arena. Since then, he has started a project to redraw Vietnamese folk paintings such as: Dan ca koi, Vinh hoa Ngu ho, Uoc vong hoi sinh... in his own style with images closer to today's youth. Xuan Lam also has the idea of painting on other items such as: Dresses, handbags, lucky money envelopes, desk calendars, notebooks...

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