OPENING NIGHT AT ‘MORNING IN THE MOUNTAINS’

Hanoi-based artist Nguyen The Hung launched his new exhibition ‘Morning in the Mountains,’ over the weekend at one of Saigon’s best contemporary art venues, Craig Thomas Gallery. The show presents a collection of mixed media paintings that explore the culture and traditions of the different ethnic tribes that populate the northern regions of Vietnam.

The 12 works in the show are a mixture of experimental styles including action painting, do paper, traditional lacquer painting, as well as more contemporary art techniques and colours. Hung also adopted a blend of materials, using acrylics, Chinese ink, gold leaf, lacquer paint and photography.

We had a chat with the artist to find out more about ‘Morning in the Mountains.’

Artist Nguyen The Hung

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“The idea for this collection was born from a volunteer project I worked on, where we taught drawing to children in the Ha Giang Highlands. I was influenced by the kid’s pure way of seeing things and naivety, something I think adults often forget when they get older,” says Hung.

“I concentrated on observing and depicting the Dao and H’mông ethnic groups. They made a strong impression on me. I was fascinated with what a deep connection they have to nature.‘Morning in the Mountains’ is something to remind myself of the beauty of nature and the beautiful, pure minds of the people who live among the mountains.”

Morning in The Mountains 01

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The paintings are striking and the mix of images with textures creates a unique and contemporary look for such traditional characters and natural settings. Hung plans to continue on a similar artistic course into the future.

“I love experimenting with different materials. They can create quite different impressions on the dimensions and depths of a painting. I’m currently playing with lacquer on canvas and planning for a solo exhibition in Hanoi in 2017.”

Check out ‘Mountains in the Morning’ at Craig Thomas Gallery now.

Raining behind the mountains

Morning In The Mountains 08

Photos by Cao Tri

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source : anyarena.com