NATURAL BEAUTY: Yellow Iris, one of the silk paintings by Hoàng Định

HÀ NỘI Silk paintings depicting nature and the female form are on display at an exhibition titled 'August' in Hà Nội.

Veteran artists Hoàng Định and Bùi Việt Dũng are close friends in art and life. They share the same passion for painting. Though they have organised many exhibitions, this is the first time they have showcased silk paintings.

They named the exhibition 'August' to respect the beauty of nature in autumn and the time of the exhibition.

While Dũng specialises in silk paintings, Định considers this material a hobby, while he is better known for oil paintings.

“Oil on canvas and silk bring me different inspirations,” said Định.

“Silk is a graceful and tender material, I use wet colours to paint and wash the artwork many times until I feel satisfied with the colour.”

He started working with silk in 1997. His first silk painting Lily was displayed at the national fine arts festival in 2007. He is showcasing the painting at this exhibition as a landmark in his career, where the love for silk began.

Định is one among very few painters in Việt Nam to follow abstract expressionism, with flamboyant strokes and emphasis on free, spontaneous and personal emotions. In silk paintings, he tends to follow Impressionism and Romanticism. Định was born in 1953 in Hải Phòng City. His exhibition of oil paintings with artist Somsak Chaituch from the Netherlands held last year in Hà Nội received acclaim from viewers and critics.

Dũng was born in 1957 in Huế. Currently he works as a designer at Kiến Trúc (Architecture) Magazine and a lecturer at the Hà Nội Architectural University. 

Painter Lê Huy Tiếp, president of the Graphic Arts Council of the Việt Nam Fine Arts Association, said he was impressed by the silk paintings exhibition.

“Together with lacquer, silk is a remarkable material of Vietnamese fine arts, however in recent years silk painting has not been popular, not many artists focus on this genre,” said Tiếp.

“So the large silk paintings (mostly 100cm by 150cm) displayed at this exhibition are really amazing proving the talent and effort of the two artists.”

SILK SPECIALIST: Portrait of artist Bùi Việt Dũng. Photo courtesy of organiser

“While Định draws inspiration from nature, Dũng displays the female form. While Định’s colours are spread on the silk, Dũng leaves many blank spaces in the paintings to highlight the characters and his hidden intention.”

The exhibition will run until August 27 at the Việt Nam Fine Arts Museum, 66 Nguyễn Thái Học Street, Hà Nội. VNS