“Lacquer is an applied product of painting and decorative arts. This is a wonderful creative material, worthy of becoming a ‘National’ art form because the North is where the most highly appreciated lacquer works are created. […] Raising the importance of lacquer works is truly necessary. Our first attempt was in 1929 […] and we also need to push the study of this art form further.”
Lacquer painting in Việt Nam is a great art, inseparable from the country’s cultural history. This excellent traditional art also spread beyond borders and made Việt Nam one of the cradles of lacquer techniques.
If the history of lacquer making is traced back to the 15th century, then the current brilliance owes a great deal to Joseph Inguimberty of the Indochina Fine Arts College for opening lacquer classes as early as 1927. Thanks to the school’s new, modern means, this French master clearly redefined the creative process of lacquer while at the same time introducing new principles. With the help of Alix Aymé, a freelance and talented painter, they enriched the use of color in a special way in lacquer.
Traditionally, only red, black, and brown are available, but silver and gold plating were also represented. Thanks to the introduction of new materials such as eggshell, cadmium sulfide or chrome oxide, other colors such as white, yellow or green appeared.
This innovation was continuous and allowed artists to apply this Asian technique on an equal footing with European painting.
ASIAN PAINTERS
MODERN ART OF VIỆT NAM
Auction on March 7, 2024
Contact: reynier@aguttes.com
ALIX AYMÉ (1894-1989), Flowers and the vase
An artwork from Indochina Fine Arts College, the middle of the 20th century
ALIX AYMÉ (1894-1989), A young mother and her daughter
An artwork from Indochina Fine Arts College, circa 1940-50
