“This series of work is about how Vietnam has changed since the introduction of the open door policies and the impact of urban development on the human living space.”
Le Thanh Thu’s works reflect the rapid changes of the Vietnamese culture, globalisation and the challenge to deal with an increasingly complicated life.
In his latest works it looks as if Thu has combined his two creative passions: writing and painting. They are intricate compositions of small symbols resembling an ancient handwriting in an unfamiliar script. Could it by Egyptian or perhaps Chinese? Looking closer the symbols are not abstract characters, but stylised human figures. Realising that, the painting changes from a scroll with text to an urban landscape of a busy life in the city.
Le Thanh Thu lives and works in Ho Chi Minh City, however he was born (1956) and raised in the country in Qui Nhon.
He became a writer and poet in the mid seventies, soon reaching critical acclaim in Vietnam and later in America, where his poems are still published today. He started painting twenty years ago, as he was searching for new ways to express his ideas.
Thu has been the recipient of many art awards. His works were three times included in the Asean Art Awards (in 1996, 1998 and 1999) and he is regarded as one of Vietnam’s leading established artists.
Thu has participated in many public and commercial exhibitions at the Fine Arts Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, Tu Do Gallery in Ho Chi Minh City and on several occasions in Tokyo, Japan at the Kanazawa Art Museum, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum, the Fujita Vente Art Museum and Ishikawa Prefectural Museum as well as at Gallery Vietnam in New York, USA and the Artoteek in The Hague, Netherlands.
Voices of Vietnam is Thu’s first exhibition in Australia.
His work is represented in numerous private and public collections in Vietnam and internationally, most notably The Vietnam National Art Museum in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Museum and The Singapore National Art Museum.
