| The Chinese produced lacquer paintings
already 800 years ago, but the lacquer painting technique
has hit a renaissance due to a group of artists in
Vietnam. They have taken the difficult art form into the
21st Century.
Trinh Tuan is 38 years
old and in many ways typical for the 6,000 artists who
live in Hanoi, the art Mecca in Asia. He received his
training at the Hanoi Industrial University for the Fine
Arts, one of Hanoi’s two art Universities. He has an
outgoing personality, is curious, is interested in
establishing contact with visitors, and has a humor
familiar to Europeans. |
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| However, in one way he is
very different. With his wife, Hoa – who is also an
artist – he has chosen to focus on the laborious art
of lacquer paintings. The technique of lacquer paintings
came to Vietnam around A.D. 1450 when a Vietnamese
Mandarin was sent to China to learn about this particular
form of art. The Chinese collected the lacquer substance
from a tree which produces a sap suitable for painting.
In China, people have known the process of lacquer work
perhaps as long as seven thousand years.
It is a very
meticulous work to produce a lacquer painting, and the
process can take several months to complete. First, a
piece of wood is being prepared and polished to serve as
a template. The lacquer substance is then applied and
polished, often in 8 – 10 layers. Colours, silver
and gold leaf, mother of pearl, eggshell and other
substances are applied between the layers of lacquer. The
process is very time consuming and requires a lot of
skills. "It is difficult to know the final result
and have full control of colours, even with many years of
experience. Suddenly, a colour you thought to be red,
turns out more brownish", says Trinh Tuan. "The
final appearance of the colour may depend on in which
layer of lacquer it has been applied".
Trinh Tuan is Associate Professor at the University
where he himself was a student and graduated in 1985. He
has participated in several exhibitions abroad, such as
in Japan (1996), China (1996), Germany (1997), Singapore
(1997), Denmark (1997, 1998). He plans to exhibit in New
York, Buenos Aires and Bangkok (Thavibu Gallery) in 1999.
He also sets aside time to teach foreign students of
lacquer paintings among his busy schedule. "I went
to Hanoi to study under Trinh Tuan because he and Hoa are
among the best lacquer artists in Vietnam" says the
Danish artist Marianne Rask. "They are also
wonderful people who share their joy of art with
others."
Around 20 students who major in lacquer paintings,
graduate from Hanoi’s two Art Universities every
year. However, most of the new graduates choose not to
pursue lacquer paintings, but turn to other art forms.
"It can be much quicker to earn a way of living by
painting oil on canvas", says Trinh Tuan. "A
piece of canvas is inexpensive, and if the inspiration is
present, a skilled artist may produce a painting in a
very short time". Lacquer paintings will necessarily
be relatively more expensive. The wooden template costs
around US$ 30, which is a high price in Vietnam
considering the low wages. On top of that, it will take
at least one month to complete the lacquer painting due
to the many layers of lacquer which have to be applied
and the very intensive polishing work.
A half of dozen lacquer artists are today among the
top Vietnamese artists. There is today an extensive
production of fake paintings by the late and famous
Vietnamese painter Bui Xuan Phai who painted oils. It is
assuring to know however, that lacquer paintings cannot
be ‘faked’ due to the long and complex process
of making the painting. It is not possible to copy a
lacquer painting since the colours depend on the layer in
which they have been applied. If you do not know the
‘code’, a copy cannot be made. Lacquer
paintings are also very durable. An oil painting may show
cracks in the paint after some years, but the lacquer
painting will last unchanged for several hundreds of
years.
"I know that it is a difficult form of art",
says Trinh Tuan. "But I love it, and I will never
give up to produce lacquer paintings". |