HÀ NỘI — The launch event and round-table discussion on the book L’Art de l’Annam (The Art of Annam) by French author Henri Gourdon will be held next Tuesday.

The event will be held at l’Espace, the French cultural centre in Hà Nội.

Annam was the name of Việt Nam used prior to 1945.

The launch of the Vietnamese version of this book with the participation of translator Trương Quốc Toàn will be held at 6pm on February 21 at l’Espace, located on 21 Tràng Tiền Street. 

At the beginning of the 20th century, under the direction of Albert Maybon (a French author who had deep knowledge on Asia), the book collection Les Arts Coloniaux (Colonial Arts) was elaborated with the aim of studying in a systematic and global way the artistic works of inhabitants who live in the colonies of France (from Indochina to Madagascar, Northern Africa and Syria).

The book The Art of Annam, which is part of this collection, was published by the Editions de Boccard in 1933. It is one of the works of Henri Gourdon, director of the Colonial School, and also the first general director of public Instruction in Indochina.

On the basis of scattered notes, research and personal meditations, the author presented a global view of the origins and tendencies of Annamese art.

The text is accompanied by a very beautiful album of 16 documentary shots that strongly illustrate the results obtained by the Annamite artists until that time.

Author of the book, Henri Gourdon (1876-1943), significantly contributed to the education reform programme of France in Indochina and had profound knowledge of this region. He is also the author of the book Indochine, which was published by Larousse Publishing House in 1931 and had several beautiful photos of Việt Nam of that time. — VNS