Early Masters of Vietnamese Contemporary Art

Modern Vietnamese art is young: it just came into being in the late 20s of the 20th century. However, it has the masters who command respect from all connoisseurs. Those men have created niches of their own and given Vietnam its own place in the world of art.

Vietnam's modern art was formed in the period between 1925 and 1945 with the establishment of Indochina Fine Arts College (Original French name: l'École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de l'Indochina). This college, founded by the artists Victor Tadieu and Nam Son, provided an ideal environment for aspiring young artists. There world's schools of art and prominent artists were studied side by side with Vietnamese traditional art. The French as well as Vietnamese teachers helped the students catch up with the new art techniques. Many successful artists of Vietnam's early modern art were educated at Indochina Fine Arts College. Before the foundation of the college, there were some Vietnamese artists studying art in France but they are rather obscure and their influence limited.

The artists of the formative years of Vietnam's modern art were characterized by their enthusiasm for art and eagerness to experiment. They explored the Western as well as traditional Vietnamese art techniques, tried their hands at different materials and gradually established their styles. The number, quality and diversity of their works are impressive considering the newness of Vietnam's modern art and the youth of the artists at that time. Some of the paintings of those young artists were exhibited in international fairs and exhibitions such as Rome (1932), Milan (1934), Bruxelles (1935) and San Francisco (1937). They attracted attention and praise from the critics who called them "The Paris School of Vietnam". Their paintings bear influences of European, especially French art but still have a distinct Vietnamese feel. One of the remarkable achievements of the first artists is the formation of lacquer painting, a genre uniquely Vietnamese.