The oil on canvas "Property of a Lady of Title" is the first Vietnamese artwork on auction at this distinguished auction house. — VNA/VNS Photo Minh Hợp

LONDON — A painting by Vũ Cao Đàm, one of the most influential artists in Việt Nam in the 20th century, was sold for 45,000 GBP (US$60,000) at a London auction on May 2.

The oil on canvas Property of a Lady of Title was the top-selling item at Sloane Street Auctions on that day and marked the first Vietnamese artwork ever auctioned at the house.

Originally showcased at Vũ Cao Đàm’s 1960 solo exhibition in London, organised by the renowned Frost & Reed gallery, the painting has a fully documented provenance. It was acquired at the 1960 show by the father of the current owner.

Sloane Street Auctions’ founder and CEO, Daniel Hunt, described the work as rare and praised Vũ Cao Đàm as “a Chagall of the East.” He noted growing international interest in the artist’s work.

The oil painting 'Property of a Lady of Title' by Vũ Cao Đàm. —Photo courtesy of Sloane Street Auctions

Born in 1908 in Hà Nội to a well-off family, the fifth of fourteen children, the artist was influenced by French culture from a very young age as his father, Vũ Đình Thi (1864-1930), was a scholar and had an in-depth knowledge of French culture.

A graduate of the Hà Nội College of Fine Arts, Vũ Cao Đàm was taught by French artists Victor Tardieu and Joseph Inguimberty. In 1931, he travelled to Paris on a scholarship to further his studies at the Ecole de Louvre.

In 1949, he relocated with his family to southern France, where the local environment as well as the influence of his neighbour Chagall, who lived just a kilometre away, is evident in his later paintings, such as the present one.

The London-based Sloane Street Auctions specialises in auctioning old master drawings and paintings, European furniture and works of art, impressionist art, modern and contemporary art, and photography.

Not only showing interest in Vietnamese art, Sloane Street Auctions also joined efforts to help unfortunate children in Việt Nam through supporting Facing the World, a UK-registered charity which has operated in Việt Nam since 2007 to provide medical treatment for children born with craniofacial defects, which helps fund around 10,000 surgeries annually. — VNA/VNS