The Unique Simplicity of Van Tho Artist
Paintings by artist Van Tho are unique in their use of color palettes and seem to be very quick and agile in drawing. It is said that he had some influence from Picasso, but in his generation, Picasso influenced many people or gave them boldly changing perspectives.
Drawing quickly and drawing a lot, Van Tho doesn’t seem to want to push a painting too deeply, but wants to record fleeting impressions of people and scenes. He has his own unique style with simple compositions that do not go beyond realistic painting.
Van Tho’s paintings begin with simplicity from the observed subject, composition, way of creating lines and color harmony. It seems that the artist likes to use contrasting color relationships: yellow, lemon yellow with cobalt blue, blue; orange yellow with green, dark blue…. The people, the scenery, the boat, the sky with rolling clouds, the turbulent sea, the endless sand… Each object, therefore, stands out. in many different ways, confronting without disputing. Van Tho’s colorful palette is close to folk art, Dong Ho paintings, Hang Trong paintings and votive goods, something that Nguyen Tu Nghiem was once interested in.
Portraits are a special series of the artist. A large array of colors as the background, a few lines depicting the character, dots on the face, hands, outlines of clothes, appearance, we have an experienced Van Cao with a kind smile. A Bui Xuan Phai, pained by the lines of a contemplative old town, a Nguyen Sang, with his eyes glazed over with life, or portraits of kind-hearted young women. The array of colors seems pure, but it contains the fate of the character that the artist sees and reads. Van Cao’s restless loneliness is hidden not only in the portrait, but also in the haunting yellow background like the colors in Van Gogh’s self-portraits.
Van Tho was born in 1938, and graduated from Hanoi University of Fine Arts. His art is widely known at home and abroad with many solo exhibitions and groups of authors representing his generation.
GREEN PALM GALLERY – Phòng tranh Cọ Xanh
Headquarters: 39 Hang Gai, Hanoi, Vietnam
Hotline: + 84 24 3828 8298 – +84 97762 7722
Email: info@greenpalmgallery.com
Branch: 49 Mac Thi Buoi, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Hotline: +84 28 6650 7477 – +84 98874 1116
Email: info_hcm@greenpalmgallery.com
Website: http://greenpalmgallery.com/
