Farewell to painter Le Thiet Cuong - a pioneer of minimalist art style

Painter, curator and art critic Le Thiet Cuong – one of the prominent figures of Vietnamese contemporary art, passed away on the evening of July 17 in Hanoi, at the age of 63, after a long battle with illness. His passing left a deep sorrow in the visual arts community and art lovers.

Painter Le Thiet Cuong was born in 1962 in Hanoi . He studied art design at the Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema (1985–1990) and soon made his mark in the Vietnamese painting scene with his distinctive minimalist style. “Minimalism is me, I am minimalism,” he once said, as a manifesto of artistic survival.

Portrait of painter Le Thiet Cuong. Photo: FBNV

Through more than three decades of non-stop creation, he is a pioneer in bringing abstract and minimalist art into Vietnamese painting, while expanding his creativity to many fields such as sculpture, photography, design, and architecture. His works are exhibited at home and abroad, and are in the collections of many museums and individuals around the world .

Not only a practicing artist, he is also a curator, critic and author of many art books, including “Seeing” (2017), “People and Homes” (2024), and “Talking with Painting” (2025) – a publication published just two months before his death.

Artist Le Thiet Cuong is the founder of the G39 artist group, which brings together prominent contemporary visual artists. He is also a familiar brush in book design and curator of many art exhibitions and display spaces.

He has inspired and guided many generations of young artists through exhibitions, workshops, and sharing sessions on artistic thinking. Many artists have been influenced by Le Thiet Cuong's style and artistic philosophy, especially his view of combining tradition and modernity.

Painter Le Thiet Cuong is a typical artist of the Capital, living and creating with passion and enthusiasm. The legacy he left behind is not only hundreds of works of art but also ideological values, lessons about consistency, cultural depth and passionate love for Vietnamese art.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/vinh-biet-hoa-si-le-thiet-cuong-nguoi-tien-phong-voi-phong-cach-my-thuat-toi-gian-709412.html