The lacquer painting 'Deer in the Forest' by artist Phạm Hậu.

HÀ NỘI — A lacquer painting by Phạm Hậu, Deer in the Forest, has been auctioned for 1.7 million euro (US$2 million), becoming the painter’s most valuable work to date and the first Vietnamese artwork to reach above the million-dollar mark this year.

The price, achieved at Sotheby’s Paris Art d’Asie auction on June 11, surpasses the artist's previous highs from 2021, including Golden Sunset over Hạ Long Bay ($1.24 million), Famous Old Pagoda in North Việt Nam ($1.03 million) and Paysage aux Jonques ($1 million).

Deer in the Forest is a six-panel lacquer screen executed in exquisite detail. Set in dream-like seclusion, a group of five deer make up the focal point of the painting, peacefully grazing and meandering in contentment amid a lush, idyllic landscape.

Deeply rooted in Vietnamese culture and spirituality, this motif carries rich symbolic meaning. In Buddhist traditions and popular beliefs, the deer embodies harmony, compassion, peace and longevity, while also evoking an idealised, serene and unspoiled world.

According to Sotheby’s, the painter does not seek strict naturalism, but rather the evocation of the essence of forms and moods. The animals are rendered with elegance and restraint, their silhouettes animated by subtle variations in proportion and rhythm, while the landscape unfolds in successive planes, suggesting depth and giving the composition room to breathe.

Phạm Hậu's palette, dominated by warm tones of vermilion, amber, ochre and gold, lends the compositions an almost otherworldly luminosity. Golden highlights, delicate transitions between light and shadow, and the rich variety of textures, from foliage and rocks to drifting clouds, demonstrate his complete mastery of the medium.

"Through successive layers and nuanced handling, Hậu achieves a compelling sense of volume and movement while maintaining overall harmony," Sotheby's wrote.

“Works by Phạm Hậu depicting deer are today among the most highly sought-after within his oeuvre. They exemplify the remarkable synthesis he achieved between pictorial modernity and Asian aesthetic traditions, and powerfully embody the spirit and refinement of the golden age of modern Vietnamese art.

"Through these compositions, Phạm Hậu offers a sensitive and timeless testament to his deep attachment to the nature, culture and spirituality of Việt Nam.”

Phạm Hậu (sitting) pictured with his students.

Phạm Hậu (1903–1995) was one of the leading figures of 20th-century Vietnamese art. He graduated from the fifth class (1929–1934) of the École des Beaux-Arts de l’Indochine and is regarded as a pioneer in the development of modern lacquer painting, blending academic artistic principles with traditional craft techniques. In 1946, he and his colleagues took part in founding the Hà Nội University of Industrial Fine Arts.

According to Hậu’s son, architect Phạm Gia Yên, the artist developed a deep love for nature early in life. Wherever he lived, there was always a garden. Each day, beyond painting, he devoted considerable time to studying, pruning and shaping plants.

The main themes in his works are pagodas and rural landscapes in northern and central Việt Nam. Beyond his four million-dollar works, his highest-priced paintings consistently portray scenery and the natural world. — VNS