HÀ NỘI — A ceremony held in Hà Nội yesterday celebrated the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Việt Nam Fine Arts Association.

Võ Văn Thưởng, member of the Political Bureau, general secretary of the Central Party and head of the Commission for Popularisation and Training, congratulated the association for its achievements over the past 60 years.

“The association should continue to bring creativity into full play, which is associated with the pride and responsibility of artists to build a Vietnamese fine art with both progressive and traditional identity,” he stressed. “The artists should maintain the true, the good and the beautiful while promoting Việt Nam’s fine art to the world.”

He said the association should encourage artist members to create more works with high quality of ideological message and technique; improve the effectiveness of exhibition activities and develop fine art critics.

Since its beginning with just 123 members, the association has vividly depicted the process of building socialism in the north, fighting against invaders in the south and reuniting the country. Many artists visited industrial zones, mines, rural and mountain regions and battlefields to capture the entire country’s fight to win independence and build the nation. Today, the association gathers 1,900 members from across the country, who are joining more and more activities like field trips, camping for painting and exhibiting their works within and outside the country.

There remain some shortcomings within the association. Some artists rely on old ways of creating without any innovation. Some have even copied others or violated copyright. Some important topics like farmers, workers, soldiers and people’s security officers have not been taken seriously.

The association has been awarded the Labour Order, the Independent Order, the Hồ Chí Minh Order, and the Golden Star Order.

At the ceremony, the association gave merit certificates to former leaders of the association and some artists with active contributions to the sector. — VNS