A glance at Vietnamese folk painting!
Written by Lan Nguyen Thi
Wednesday, 01 October 2008 10:24 - Last Updated Tuesday, 25 June 2013 04:32
Folk painting is a combination of traditional cultural values with ancient artistic methods
that have been created through the labor of past generations. There are two types of
Vietnamese folk painting, Tet holiday paintings and worshiping paintings. Long history.
The folk painting’s journey is the story of the Vietnamese traditional art from the past to the
present. During the Ly Dynasty (12th century), there were many families who specialized in
woodblock carving. By the end of the Tran Dynasty, they were also printing paper money. At the
beginning of the Le So Dynasty, the Chinese technique of carving printing boards was adopted
and improved. The History Museum and the Fine Art Museum in Hanoi still keep old printing
boards as archives.
During the Mac Dynasty (16th century), folk painting developed quite extensively and was
popular among the aristocracy in Thang Long. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the art of folk
painting was stable and highly developed.
Depending on artistic style, drawing-printing technique as well as the materials used, folk
painting are classified into painting trends according to the name of their place of production.
Each style of painting is different. However, in all the styles, shapes are created based on the
concept of don tuyen binh do (single line-simple designs) which uses lines to bend the colored
shapes and to make a border for the picture. Another method used is
thuan tay hay mat
(easy to draw and to see). With this design form, the folk painting does not depend on the rules
of perspective.
In a folk painting, the deities are large and take the upper positions, the ordinary people are
drawn on a smaller scale and the size of the animals as well as the natural scenery are depicted
depends on their relationship to the sentiment or expressed story. These unique characteristics
make the paintings profoundly impressive. With color as red as peony, as yellow as ripe paddy,
as green as a young rice plant, the images have by themselves the taste of rural areas in all
their characteristic rusticity. Besides, scallop shells give a typically Vietnamese gleam and
constitute a decorative element of printed pictures of a very simple treatment.
As a result of cultural exchange, Vietnamese folk painting have retained and developed certain
traditional aspects. As well, the paintings have been influenced and enriched by the genius of
other painting styles. One exception is Dong Ho paintings, which continue to exist unchanged
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A glance at Vietnamese folk painting!
Written by Lan Nguyen Thi
Wednesday, 01 October 2008 10:24 - Last Updated Tuesday, 25 June 2013 04:32
against the challenges of time.
Dong Ho Paintings
Dong Ho folk painting is famous because Dong Ho is the only village where people know how to
make the painting with completely natural materials. The printing paper is made of the bark of a
tree called "Do". The background paper is originally white; then, people use natural materials to
change the colors of the papers to orange, pink, yellow, purple, etc.
Dong Ho folk painting is known for the durability of their colors which are refined from various
kinds of tree leaves that people can easily find in Vietnam. Particularly, the red color is taken
from the earth of hills and mountains; black is from coal of burned bamboo leaves; the glittering
white color is made of sea shells. After that, in order to prevent the painting from the daylight,
the artist will cover it with a layer of sticky rice paste (called ho nep).
Paintings here vary from decorative for Tet Holiday to pieces of worship. Dong Ho painting is
considered a cultural symbol of Vietnam; it has been sustained for centuries. Scenes depicted
in these paintings are usually those of ordinary life, landscapes, seasons of the year, symbols of
prosperity, etc. They also reflect people’s innermost feelings, wishes and simple dreams.
Because their popular appearance, folk painting is available throughout Vietnam, from the
village markets to the capital city.
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A glance at Vietnamese folk painting!
Written by Lan Nguyen Thi
Wednesday, 01 October 2008 10:24 - Last Updated Tuesday, 25 June 2013 04:32
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cityinsight.vn/art-experience-afternoon-only.html
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arts:
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