A Hanoi painter who specialized in oils, India ink and sanguine in the old Oriental spirit.
Born in Hanoi, lived and grew in a scholar teaching Han script family. His parent named him is NGUYỄN VẠN THỌ with a meaning of stable and long life. He took brand name of NAM SƠN in his career. He died 26th Jan 1973 at a private house, 68 Nguyen Du street, Hanoi.
During child time, he was self-learning through Japanese, Chinese painting books. These knowledge help him stable growth when joint fine arts field.
1920 Nam Son met Victor Tadieu at 93 Dinh Tien Hoang street that placed a Credit Foncier. They made friend then 1922 Victor Tardieu help him applying into Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts - ENSBA and Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts Appliques et des Metiers d’ Art – ENSAAMA, in Paris.
Fist joint show (with painter Thang Trần Phềnh) at first Hanoi’s Exhibition House in 1923.
1925 the Indochina Fine Arts College established, Nam Son assisted Victor Tardieu Dean basing on his knowledge of Western and Eastern. After graduated the colleges in France, he return Vietnam and became a professor of Decorate Dept from 5th to 17th colleges year with other French professors.
1931 won a silver medal at the fine Arts Exhibitions in Paris with a work named My Mother Portrait . This work presents Louvre Museum, Paris that is a first work come from Vietnam.
1935, 1936 SADEAI organized 1st and 2nd Exhibition in Hanoi, Nam Son present the works related to Buddhism subject using a sanguine pencil. In the 2nd exhibition he used colors that were brighter, charming, clearly and different the red, silver colors of sanguine pencil.
1942- went to Japan with Nguyen Do Cung (the 1st Director of Fine Arts Museum of Viet Nam) and Luong Xuan Nhi, where he made a great number of pictures landscape of Kyoto with temples and the Japanese girls of Kimono style.
1960’s made many India ink paintings.
Left few works. Some highly regarded paintings are:
Young Girl (Sanguine, collection of Nguyen Van Lam)
Buddhist Priest (Sanguine, collection of Nguyen Van Lam)
The Rice Market beside Red River (Silk, the foreign private collection)
The White Stork and Yellow Fishes (Wood sculpt, the foreign private collection)
(Source: Dr. Philip Nguyen from www.ramgallery.net, 2nd July 2013)
