HCM CITY — A book on the country’s revolutionary fine arts in the 1950s was released last weekend in HCM City, after years of work by staff of prestigious museums and associations. 

The 300-page Họa Sĩ Kháng Chiến (Vietnamese Artists in the Resistance War against the French colonialism), includes 255 photos and images, some of them released for the first time, and many documents related to Vietnamese artists in the 1950s. 

It was collected and edited by Đào Mai Trang of the Văn Hóa Nghệ Thuật (Culture-Arts) magazine, in co-operation with veteran artists and cultural researchers, including Dr Mã Thanh Cao, former director of the HCM City Fine Arts Museum.

The book features the first students who graduated from the Việt Nam Fine Arts College, which opened in 1945 in Hà Nội, including Tô Ngọc Vân — the school’s director — and his students such as Lưu Công Nhân, Trọng Kiệm, Trần Lưu Hậu and Lê Lam.  

Artists such as Đào Đức, Mai Long, Ngô Mạnh Lân, Huỳnh Văn Mười, Xuân Đông and Trần Trung Tín, who made the first bricks for the country’s revolutionary cinematography industry, are also featured.

The artists played an important role in the development of the country’s contemporary fine arts. The book focuses on their life and art of different styles, which depict the country’s heroic history, culture and lifestyle from 1950 to 1954. 

It also introduces paintings from this period, some of which focus on the patriotic struggle of local residents.

The book’s publisher, the Fine Arts Publishing House, organised a seminar last Saturday in HCM City on the 22 Vietnamese artists who took the first course at the Việt Nam College of Fine Arts. The event attracted many readers from HCM City, Hà Nội and southern provinces.

Cao, who hosted the seminar, said that Họa Sĩ Kháng Chiến would be valuable for younger generations, particularly students at art schools.

“They can learn not only about the country’s contemporary fine arts but also its history and culture,” he said.

The book is available in bookstores and websites. — VNS