The Artist

1971 Hanoi Vietnam

Hai is a highly-respected teacher of lacquer painting at the Vietnam Fine Arts University in Hanoi, on the faculty since 1995 to current day. He is known for his fanciful depictions of the animals of the Zodiac, typically made for celebrating the lunar new year.

Influenced by a vast array of artists ranging from the ancient to the erotic, Diep Quy Hai’s work aims at the center of human existence, at the ego and the subconscious, exploring the correlation to human emotion.

Hai states, “I express only the feeling I would like to show, not only the outside external figure but also the internal ego. The ego of art says so much about art, something so easy to understand, and yet something so difficult to fully comprehend. This problem belongs to the viewer.” Hai’s works offer the viewer entrance into his inner world as well as providing impetus for one’s own internal investigation. The nature of existence can be understood within the viewer’s own self-realization.
Hai graduated from the Vietnam Fine Arts University, Hanoi in 1995 and continued his studies to achieve his MFA in 2002.
In 2004 Art Vietnam Gallery presented his solo exhibition Inside Outside, a series of lacquer paintings depicting the artist’s feelings on all levels of consciousness.

Year of the Rat 1994

This work is especially meaniful for Suzanne since she was born in the Year of the Rat 1948 and her artist friend from Gang of Five, Pham Quang Vinh was also born in the Year of the Rat 1960. 1994 is the year these two rats met and began their lifelong collaboration in the arts of Vietnam.