Nguyen The Dung and herd of one cow
For many art lovers, the name Nguyen The Dung quickly conjures up the familiar nickname “Dung ‘Bull’”- a term affectionately linked to the persistent presence of the bull throughout his creative journey. More than just a repeated motif, the bull in Nguyen The Dung’s work is both anthropomorphized and metamorphosed, appearing in satirical, poetic scenarios that provoke layered associations with humanity and contemporary life.
Know more about Nguyen The Dung
Born in 1985 in Thanh Hoa, Vietnam, Nguyen The Dung graduated from the Vietnam University of Fine Arts in Hanoi in 2008, later completing his master’s degree in painting in 2011. From the outset of his career, he has exhibited both nationally and internationally, gradually developing a signature style within contemporary Vietnamese art through his emblematic and ever-evolving bull imagery. Equally skilled as a painter and sculptor, Nguyen The Dung’s three-dimensional pieces bear the same distinctiveness and originality as his paintings.
Dung’s artistic voice bridges classical realism, surrealist sensibilities, and the bold vibrancy of pop art. Everyday figures and images are reimagined through vivid color palettes and clear composition, forging a visual language that is at once instantly relatable and subtly uncanny. Instead of prescribing a single philosophical reading, Nguyen The Dung lets each image suggest its own web of association for the viewer.
Nguyen The Dung at his "Nghiem Canh" exhibition (photo: dantri.vn)
The surreal “Herd of one cow” motif
The subject in art is a range of reality. Every artist usually has a main subject, that is, the reality of life that he is most familiar with. But artistic symbols are not like that, even though that symbol still comes from life. The symbol is probably the author’s obsession, why didn’t he “choose” this, this object, this animal, or the others as his artistic symbols. This is related to past life experiences, possibly long ago, related to mental events and a variety of other areas such as memory and psychology. Artistic obsession through symbolism is not so insoluble, but close to it.
For artist Nguyen The Dung, it is a cow. Dung’s artistic symbol is the cow. Dung is haunted by cows. The cow is the artistic symbol of Nguyen The Dung, which means that the cow is not a destination, not an object to describe, but a means for Dung to reveal and express his inner world.
Therefore, although Dung uses a realistic, light, dark, and precise drawing style, no cow is complete, no cow has all its parts. Even though everyone realized they were cows. All of Dung’s cows are headless, instead, growing from them are human hands. Since then, it has gone from real to surreal, from reasonable to absurd. The cow’s heads – hands, spread out, facing up, holding their tails, holding their hind legs, holding hands. Struggling, torn, resentful or patient. It’s okay to call it cows, but it’s not wrong to call it a cow or is it a herd of cows? Because everything is the same, stuck together, overlapping, lined up horizontally or vertically, gradually larger, gradually smaller, gradually darker, gradually lighter. Similarities and absurdities will give rise to meaning through a series of why questions. Why do I crawl on someone’s arm? Why are the cows exactly the same from posture, shape to color? Why do cows keep sticking together? Why am I a cow-headed person? Why are you so silent and motionless?
This way of forming ideas like this has been a method of creation, not only with painting, not only now, East and West have existed since ancient times. Although each era is different, each artist is different. They must find a way to resolve the situation of incarnation in their own way to reveal the meaning, a special meaning that cannot exist without incarnation, and is meaningless.
Painting is not literature to describe, nor does it illustrate any literary idea. But today’s painting is different from before, it does not only focus on the aesthetic needs of vision, today’s painting needs to present a “story”, a “question”. Nguyen The Dung raised questions. If you can answer it, it is not necessarily correct. That’s just one understanding, a small part of the answer. The cows lying prostrate on the red-carpeted steps represent a contrast between urban and rural areas, rich and poor, solemn and bustling. The guys have identical office fashion, plaid shirts, suits, and shiny black shoes, all with cow-shaped bodies and wide-open eyes. People are cows, cows are people. The origin of farmers is the ridiculousness of city people who like to learn the bad things of the countryside and vice versa, farmers who only like the bad things of the city. The layout, the same cows lined up on an undefined flat background, evokes the understanding of herd psychology which is very hot in today’s society. From clothes to thoughts, even happiness and sadness are the same. Pulling each other according to the trend, sad following the trend, and happy also following the trend.
Looking at the paintings of previous artists, one immediately sees beauty and ugliness. Through the paintings, viewers will have a feeling of joy, optimism, dreaminess, and even sadness. Looking at the paintings of young people today, you can see them for a longer time and not immediately see them; Today’s paintings are not too strict about beauty and ugliness, happiness and sadness. With “questions” in paintings like Nguyen The Dung’s, viewers are left wondering, awakened to something, questioned, confused, and looking for their own answers.
Nguyen The Dung’s starting point is realism but not pure painting, but mixed with graphic language in the smooth, flat background with little transition between light and dark, and the repetitive shaping, omitting details, and simple layout. Next is the shift to surrealism and more or less pop-art. Dung possesses an unfamiliar color palette, colors and hues that seem to come from somewhere with pale purple, pale pink, faded yellow, and gray, evoking sadness, concern, and regret. Such is Nguyen The Dung’s spiritual life, such is Dung’s painting.
Notable artworks from Nguyen The Dung
Golden rose
“Golden rose” is an oil painting by Nguyen The Dung, measuring 105 x 135 cm and currently featured in the Green Palm Gallery collection. At first glance, the composition’s apparent contradictions-the anthropomorphic bull in a crisp suit, seated nonchalantly against a patterned backdrop, and a tiny golden rose in the foreground-are both striking and confounding. The bull, rendered in crimson instead of its natural hues, pulses against the darkness of the canvas.
Yet this painting unfolds with prolonged attention. While the title spotlights the rose, its presence is deliberately marginal. Instead, the stylized bull claims visual dominance, creating a dynamic tension: the golden rose might symbolize ideal beauty or an unattainable aspiration, placed in stark contrast to the bull’s overwhelming psychological presence. Nguyen The Dung’s intention is not clear narrative, but rather a subtle commentary on modern society and its hidden contradictions-where outward appearances of power and order barely contain unpredictable, often conflicted impulses beneath.
"Golden rose" conveys multiple layers of meaning
You and me
Also measuring 105 x 135 cm, “You and me” continues Nguyen The Dung’s exploration of the anthropomorphic bull. Here, two poised, well-dressed figures sit side by side, their poses and gestures strikingly synchronized. The initial impression is one of harmonious companionship, their suits and hands mirroring each other.
A closer look, however, reveals a subtle divide-suggested only by a shift in the coloration of the hands as they pass across the boundary between the two. This fleeting detail introduces complexity into their relationship, implying that even in our closest connections, invisible boundaries and wariness persist. The painting thus opens up a quiet, thoughtful reflection on the subtleties and limitations of human interactions.
Nguyen The Dung's "You and me" invites reflection on human relationships in society
Sculpture VII
Extending his signature iconography beyond painting, Nguyen The Dung’s sculptural works often reinterpret his visionary bulls in three dimensions. “Sculpture VII,” presented by Green Palm Gallery, exemplifies this approach. Crafted from fiberglass and lacquer (23 x 78 x 26 cm), the red-suited bull lounges in an attitude of relaxed confidence-a whimsical yet pointed parody of self-importance.
The glossy finish both draws the eye and accentuates the irony lurking beneath the impeccably tailored exterior. Compact yet visually impactful, “Sculpture VII” is perfectly suited for modern interiors-from living rooms and offices to creative studios and contemporary art collections.
"Sculpture VII," an artwork by Nguyen The Dung
To discover more about Nguyen The Dung and his “single herd,” art enthusiasts are invited to browse the Green Palm Gallery’s current selection or contact the gallery team for detailed consultation on artworks suited to their space and collecting interests.
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GREEN PALM GALLERY Gallery in Ha Noi: 39 Hang Gai, Ha Noi, Viet Nam
Gallery in HCM City: 49 Mac Thi Buoi, HCM City, Viet Nam
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