Why was lacquer painting considered as an original art of Vietnam?

Afterthe establishment of the Ecole des Beaux Arts de l’Indochine by theFrench in 1925, however, that anonymous craft performance became a newart form and was applied to paintings for the first time. At that time,the founders of the Ecole, Victor Tardieu and Joseph Inguimberty,recognized the beauty of the Vietnamese artistic traditions and wantedto help their students make the most of their heritage as well asteaching them Western painting. During the 20 years of its operation,the Ecole trained more than 100 Vietnamese artists who would become thepioneers of Vietnamese modern art, combining indigenous art forms withthe art of Manet, Degas, Monet, Pissarro and Renoir.The 1930s was the time when lacquer paintings and other works of finearts confronted a great renaissance. It confirmed that the ability toexpress ideas and feelings of lacquer paintings is unlimited.

Lacqueris a clear sap coming from of six species of trees growing in the Northand the South Vietnam, both belonging to the family Anacardiaceae.Lacquer - a harmless substance - is harvested in the same way as rubberby making an incision and letting the sap flow. Fresh lacquer iswhitish and turns brown upon exposure to air. Black lacquer stems froma chemical reaction between lacquer and iron, then, it will be mixedwith various natural or artificial dyes to produce the favorablecolors. Surprisingly, several shades of red are extracted from anaturally occurring red mineral, cinnabar (mercuric sulfide). White isproduced from eggshell. Eggs from ducks are used because they have abetter structure than hens’ eggs. The eggshells are cleaned andsometimes even burned to obtain a brownish tinge.

Several other materialsmay be used to make lacquer paintings; the most common are gold leafand silver leaf. Silver is used below the layers of colors to create aneffect of immense luster. Gold leaf, on the other hand, is oftenapplied as the final layer. An interesting use of gold leaf willmake it appear as bright light flowing through the window. Besides, arange of other materials may also be used, such as shells, sand, epoxyand clay.

 Applying colors and polishing

 Paintingwith lacquer is a long and complex process requiring great skill andpatience. It may take several months, depending on the specifictechnique of the artist and how many layers of lacquer are included. Itinvolves the application of many layers of lacquer on a prepared woodenboard, allowing each to dry in turn, and finally polishing the paintingwith pumice to reveal whatever colors the artist desires in differentareas of the painting. Other materials used include eggshell to producea white color, mother-of-pearl, gold and silver leaf. The final resultis smooth and durable and will not crack due to fluctuations oftemperature or humidity.

However,paintings after finishing need more time to be touched. It may bemonths, years, even plenty of years. The painters have to whet againand again their paintings to make them flat. Paints are drawn in manylayers then can bring beautiful, occult and splendid colors. If youtake notice, you can realize the capabilities and preeminence ofdifferent ones. Black lacquer is shiny, glossy and profoundlymysterious while cockroach-wing lacquer is lissome and limpid. Coveringgolden or silver color, the other colors can change to createderivative color bringing theatrical timbre. By coordinating ages ofdifferent-aged colors, color powders also become vaporous and radiantto finally make up sunk and floated parts of the paintings.

Many lacquer paintings and art objects of Vietnam have been brought overseas in mass. Painters,much or little, often draw lacquer paintings by sudden inspiration andfollowing their flow of emotions. Vibration in their heart is reflectedthrough the work without any rules or formulas. Because of thosefactors, the spirit in Vietnam's paintings turns to be profound.

Thereare some painters who have strong attachment with lacquer and havepublished resounding paintings such as Nguyen Sang with his work "Afternoon rest"; Tran Van Can with "Miss Thuy"; Phan Ke An with the painting "Missing one evening in North west"; To Ngoc Van and "Spending the night on roadside"; Mai Van Nam with "Going to Bac Ha market"; Nguyen Van Ty with "Thatched cottage and foot of jackfruit"; Tran Đinh Tho and "Bamboo"; and Nguyen Gia Tri with "Spring Garden", "Bailing water to prevent blood", and "The girl at hibiscus mutabilis  flower".

InVietnamese art treasure, besides lacquer paintings, there are manykinds of traditional paintings such as Dong Ho glazed paper paintings,oil-paintings, silk paintings.... Each type has its own specialfeatures that make Vietnamese people always feel proud when mentioningthem with foreign friends from all over the world.