Trinh Huu Ngoc (1912-1997). Jackfruit and lotus. 1989. Oil. 25×36cm
In 2017, the book ‘Trinh Huu Ngoc – from the remaining works’ by Trinh Lu right from its release, created a wave of emotions in art lovers. The wave was small (since the day the book was published) but each layer of it kept swaying, continuously slapping the shore with “Hồ Tây duck hut”, where painter Trinh Huu Ngoc had lived and painted for 27 years. And surely those wave layers will always be gently pushed by the wind, lasting with time, in the eyes of those who love art, adore and respect him…
Reading the book clearly shows the life and career of painter Trinh Huu Ngoc ups and downs, with many hardships. He was born in 1912 in Lang Thuong district, Bac Giang province in a well-educated family. His father was a ship mechanic at Ba Son – Saigon, often being on ocean ships. His mother stayed at home raising children. The children all learned French and national languages at Bac Giang primary school.
Portrait of painter Trinh Huu Ngoc (1912-1997)
Most people know him as painter Trinh Huu Ngoc, class Indochina but not many people know that he was the founder of the famous furniture brand MÉMO, in the years 1940-1954.
Logo of furniture factory MÉMO
The MÉMO brand designed all wooden furniture in the family home of Mr. Trinh Van Bo – an extremely wealthy bourgeois at no. 48, Hang Ngang Street, Hanoi, where President Ho Chi Minh stayed and wrote the Declaration of Independence. Currently, the house has become a part of Ho Chi Minh Museum. The Tribune for the Declaration of Independence on September 2, 1945 was also promptly constructed with wood and carpenters donated by the MÉMO brand.
His life went through many ups and downs according to the developments of the country’s history. From 1968 until his death, he chose to live, work, and paint with ‘self-contemplation, self-experimentation’ in Zen style.
In 1997, Fine Arts critic Thai Ba Van “commemorated the passing” of painter Trinh Huu Ngoc in the article ‘The Noble Silence’ as follows: “For the past 30 years, since the disaster of war hit Hanoi, the Americans dropped bombs at his own house on Quan Thanh Street, artist Trinh Huu Ngoc quietly picked up the last pile of scraps, made a raft to cross the West Lake, built a hut by the lake, lived alone, painted alone with plants, clouds and water.”
The above lines written by fine arts critic Thai Ba Van are about the period when painter Trinh Huu Ngoc stepped into a new stage of life. Exactly “twenty-seven years of water and reflection” from 1968 to 1995… (according to Trinh Lu).
West Lake Duck Hut where painter Trinh Huu Ngoc lived and painted for twenty seven years from 1968-1995. (Photo provided by the artist’s family)
Painter – translator Trinh Lu, second son (of the second wife) of painter Trinh Huu Ngoc, author of ‘Trinh Huu Ngoc – from the remaining works’ described the context of his father’s transitional period: “On a sunny day in the early summer of 1968, painter Trinh Huu Ngoc, nearly 60 years old, was with a son picking up scrap wood and iron that could still be used in his ruined house due to being hit by American bombs at 108 Quan Thanh, Hanoi. Are you going to make a house out of these? The son asked, his voice was doubtful. “Yes, make it of what we have, son,” he replied, “and that’s good. Heaven and earth created everything from nothing…” The artist stopped, looked up at the sky and said: “Look, the sky is still blue, the clouds are still white, the light is still so clear and beautiful, forever like that, so it’s easy to forget…”
The oil painting with the subject ‘Jackfruit and lotus’ was created by artist Trinh Huu Ngoc on July 20, 1989. The line clearly written by his own hand is on the back of the painting. The painting was numbered 37. Painter Trinh Lu said that “his father always numbered all his paintings very scientifically for easy storage”.
The back of the painting ‘Jackfruit and Lotus’
The year of 1989, a special year for the works of painter Trinh Huu Ngoc. In the writing section ‘The last flower season – the last awakening 1989 – 1992’ there is a passage: “In 1989, almost every day, I cycled to paint. The number of preserved paintings is more than 200 oil paintings of 25×36cm size. This has been the year of painting the most in my entire life – a series of paintings with distinct quality of spirit diary; saves the subtle soaring of a free sense to let go but still caress all joys, sorrows, and searches without finding…” (According to Trinh Lu).
Painter Trinh Lu said that at that time his father created a lot of paintings with this size, because he had many cardboard available. Painter Trinh Huu Ngoc had a series of homemade canvases on cardboard (canvas panel). The qualities of “canvas panel” were reasonable for the circumstances at that time, compact design, convenient to move when going to paint outdoors.
Thus, the work ‘Jackfruit and lotus’ was created in “the most prolific”, “the year with the most paintings – more than 200 paintings” of Trinh Huu Ngoc. This is the time when he “wholeheartedly” only painted. From 1972 to 1992, called “West Lake Stage – From Impressionism to Zen Painting” with subjects: Northwest mountains and forests; My home; My village; West Lake; Streets of Hanoi; Temples; Still life.” (According to Trinh Lu)
Painter Trinh Huu Ngoc didn’t paint many still life. He only painted still life when the weather was not favorable for traveling on the street to paint the scenery.
The still life theme he portrayed in his paintings was simple and rustic, with objects, flowers, fruits attached with daily life. Just look at the title “Old pot and old enamel”; “Nacre, ceramic”; “Rose and star fruit”; “Tam sơn”; “Bowl of gem and water lily”; “Lotus”; “Pineapple, lychee”; “Fruit around the house”; “Celadon”; “Pot, bowl and brown enamel”; “Lotus and coconut”… we feel the peace and serenity.
Because “he painted the self-images of those familiar characters, so he always took their casual names as the name of his paintings”. (According to Trinh Lu).
Trinh Huu Ngoc (1912-1997). Jackfruit and lotus. 1989. Oil. 25×36cm
This beautiful small oil still-life depicting flowers and fruits evokes qualities of “elegant”; there is purity, serenity. The fresh, green color of the leaf, the warm pink of the flowers, the rich, loving yellow of ripe autumn fruit reveals a more joyful moment in his carefully practiced personal balance.
See the still life of lotus and jackfruit in a cool autumn day, the blue sky, the gentle light, the dry wind, makes us suddenly remember the old people’s exclamation “summer passed, autumn’s coming” that we have read somewhere…
Painter Trinh Huu Ngoc, graduated from class 9 (1933-1938), Indochina Fine Arts College with Nguyen Duc Nung, Pham Thuc Chuong, Nguyen Van Bai, Nguyen Dzung, Hoang Lap Ngon… Therefore, Trinh Huu Ngoc’s painting was based on the foundation and basic style of the classical European academic art system. He painted in a classical Western realism style, which seems close to the style of Impressionism.
Trinh Huu Ngoc had been passionate about nature since his young age. In 1939, he went on two long bicycle trips to paint. One trip to Cao Bang and one trip down the highway to Saigon.
Catalogue of artist Trinh Huu Ngoc’s first solo exhibition in Hanoi
In 1943, he bought land, built a house and a studio on the top of Ba Vi mountain, looking down at where Đà river turns to the North to join the Red River (According to Trinh Lu)
In 1988, he had the only solo exhibition in his life called “Latest works by Zen Painter Trinh Huu Ngoc” at Exhibition House 16 Ngo Quyen, Hanoi. From that exhibition he began to be called the Zen Painter of West Lake…
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Biography of artist Trinh Huu Ngoc
- Born April 12, 1912
- Died in 1997
- Ethnicity: Kinh
- Origin: Ha Bac
- Graduated from Indochina Fine Arts College 1938
- Founder of furniture brand MÉMO (1940-1954)
- Member of the Branch of Painting, Vietnam Fine Arts Association
- Year of joining the Association: 1957
- Major works: Mostly painted landscape, still life
- First solo exhibition ‘Latest works by Zen Painter Trinh Huu Ngoc’ in 1988, at Exhibition House 16 Ngo Quyen, Hanoi
- Second solo exhibition 1992 in Paris, France
- Merit: Medal For the cause of Vietnam Fine Arts
Written by Viet Art View
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