THE TIMELESS AND SPACE-TRANSCENDING BEAUTY OF THE LOTUS IN DO DUC KHAI’S PAINTING
God chose many people to paint, but not everyone started holding a brush from the first day. This applies to Do Duc Khai – a talented painter with lacquer works of landscape and nature. Entering life as an elementary school teacher, he dropped out and entered the University of Fine Arts, starting his path of seriously pursuing art.
Dedicated to composing, Do Duc Khai has written famous works related to social life or Long Bien Bridge. However, what stands out the most are his works on lotus.
If you want to say whether lotus is a boring topic, the answer for many audiences is probably… yes. When mentioning Vietnamese painting, many people click their tongue: “Oh, it’s a lotus painting again.” However, when you take the time to look and contemplate, lotus paintings bring a cool purity, cooling hot heads after a tiring day of work. To bring about these strong vibrations, the artist had to pay attention to every line in his work.
The lotus in Do Duc Khai’s paintings is the perfect crystallization of the beauty of nature and traditional art. Famous for his lacquer material, Do Duc Khai turns the lotus flowers in Gia Lam – where he and his family live – into strangely soulful and intimate, using many materials with different colors to create a realistic lotus pond.
Without noisy competition, Do Duc Khai’s lotuses are nestled under lush green leaves but still stand out with their pure white petals and brilliant yellow pistils. He placed the lotus in different settings; sometimes, it was a windy late afternoon with soft colors, sometimes dusk when the golden sunlight sparkled, or a fiery midday with dragonflies and kingfishers close to the water’s surface to avoid the heat. Each scene of the lotus is meticulously crafted; with just a glance, you can see the artist’s love for the lotus and his passion for art. How strong does it take to cherish and place the lotus pond in the middle of the canvas in such a delicate and beautiful way?
Viewers are captivated by Do Duc Khai’s lotus paintings not only because of their meticulousness and perfection but also because of the artist’s skill. No one dares to claim that making lacquer paintings is easy. However, Do Duc Khai’s lacquer brings an incredible smoothness, accurately depicting the light reflecting on the water surface or the graceful moodiness of the branches and leaves. Each dragonfly wing in Do Duc Khai’s paintings seems to be able to rest gently on the hands of art lovers who are still admiring Do Duc Khai’s brilliant lotus flowers with the slightest touch.
Do Duc Khai has never disappointed the lotus, whether it’s a bud, blooming, or withering. With the eyes and hands of an artist, he devoted everything so that the lotus could be the most beautiful beauty among flowers. Lotus lovers will silently thank him, and those who have not had the opportunity to meet lotus will not be able to truly wait to see this flower’s noble beauty.
It is his talent, passion, and perseverance in his profession that has helped Do Duc Khai achieve much success with a series of awards and save his works in many valuable collections. Regardless of the context, Do Duc Khai’s lotus breaks through common physical barriers to bloom in the hearts of art lovers.
Visit Do Duc Khai’s lotus pond at Green Palm Gallery here.
