Before the Indochina School of Fine Arts was established in Hanoi in 1925, Vietnamese lacquer was primarily defined as a practical craft which closely associated to Vietnamese culture and spiritual life, not yet be recognized as an independent art form.
At this school, students were encouraged to break new paths with diversified modern themes, rather than limiting themselves to traditional motifs. In there, the process of making multi-layer lacquer with distinctive depth was officially explored. This marked a turning point, transforming lacquer from a craft material into a unique medium, opening a new chapter in the history of Vietnamese fine arts.
To lacquer painting, the polishing process plays a pivotal role, revealing the underlying colors and creating compositions with intricate highlights and shadows of gold leaf, silver leaf and eggshells. The interesting thing is that the subject would gradually take shapes through each layer of polishing according to the artist’s sense of beauty.
Another kind of art that inherits the meticulousness of lacquer is wood-carving. While both are painted on carefully prepared wooden panels, their techniques are entirely different. Wood-carving requires precise sketching and composition since errors in engraving are almost irreparable. Engraved lines are done to varying depths, creating contrasting elements in order to accentuate the subject.
However, the form of lacquer continues to expand alongside the development of Vietnamese culture over different periods. The exploration of new materials that break traditional compositional boundaries remains ongoing. In the mean time, themes have also broadened to reflect societal changes, from longstanding values to contemporary marks of the era.
It can be said that lacquer has undergone a transformative journey, ascending from a common material to one of a kind medium when it comes to Vietnamese arts. Each step forward of lacquer reflects shifting ideology as well as the need to affirm the unique identity in the context of Vietnam joining the global art flow.
The exhibition "100 Years of Lacquer" means to mark the 100th anniversary (1925–2025) of the Indochina School of Fine Arts in Vietnam. Organized in collaboration by Lotus Gallery, Quang San Art Museum, and Annam Gallery, this exhibition will be open to the public daily from 9am to 6pm, from 29 December 2024 to 26 January 2025.